By Steve Neavling
Three CBP officers agents committed suicide in the past three weeks, which brings the total suicides within the agency to 14 in 2022, the Daily Mail reports.
Border Patrol Agent Roque “Rocky” Sarinana, 46, died on Nov. 6, followed by Agent Javier Fabela, 50, on Nov. 13.
Agent Robert M. Boatwright, a 49-year-old canine handler, died on Nov. 20.
Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz shared news on the latest suicide on Twitter on Monday.
“On behalf of our Border Patrol family, I extend our deepest condolences to BPA Boatwright’s family, friends, and colleagues,” Ortiz wrote. “Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.”
U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, said the ongoing migrant crisis is a “very serious epidemic.”
“With long hours, horrific scenes, and anxiety-provoking situations, our men and women in green are being pushed to their breaking point every single day,” Gonzales told the Daily Mail.
“This year, 14 Border Patrol agents have taken their own life – and that is 14 too many,” he added.
Whether the work environment contributed to the agents’ death is not publicly known.
