Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com
A Border Patrol agent killed by apparent friendly fire along the Mexico border in Arizona was remembered during a poignant funeral Monday, Reuters reports.
“Our best wishes and prayers continue for the other agents involved in the incident, that they may experience healing and peace. We honor all who serve in the Border Patrol, carrying out an extremely difficult task under harsh conditions,” the family of Nicholas Ivie, 30, said in a statement issued late on Sunday.
The death underscores the dangers facing Border Patrol agents, four of whom died in less than two years in Arizona, according to Reuters.
According to more recent investigations, Ivie believed he had encountered an armed smuggler and opened fire. Two other agents, believing the same thing, returned fire, Reuters reported.
Funeral services began after a horse-drawn carriage carried Ivie’s coffin through Sierra Vista to a Mormon church.
