By Steve Neavling
A retired FBI agent has been identified by his family as the man fatally shot by a police officer at Franklin High School in El Paso.
Julio Cordero, 56, was a decorated federal agent and father of four, whose mental health had been deteriorating since his retirement from the FBI, his brother Marco Cordero told Channel 9-KTSM.
The FBI’s El Paso Field Office confirmed that Special Agent Julio Cordero served from 1996 to 2019.
“We are saddened at the loss of one of our own,” FBI spokeswoman Special Agent Jeanette Harper said.
Cordero was well known for leading Operation Poisoned Pawns, a 2007 public corruption investigation that resulted in numerous convictions, including those of three former county judges, county commissioners, school board members, and business figures.
“He was a very respected lawman in the city. He made a big difference,” Marco Cordero said, noting that his brother’s mental health began to decline after a 2014 incident when a suicidal man jumped in front of his car, causing flashbacks of a fatal crash that claimed his sister’s life in 1993.
After his retirement, Cordero suffered from PTSD and paranoia, often going days without sleep. He would improve on medication but struggled with consistent use, KTSM reported.
The incident occurred before 6 a.m. Thursday, when an El Paso Independent School District police officer shot Julio Cordero during a confrontation as Cordero was reportedly breaking windows at Franklin High School. His family noted that Cordero’s son is a senior at the school.
