Thread: Illegal immigrant facing death penalty in 2014 murder of Border Patrol agent

Illegal immigrant facing death penalty in 2014 murder of Border Patrol agent

By Greg Norman | Fox News




Gustavo Tijerina-Sandoval, left, has been found guilty in the 2014 murder of Border Patrol Agent Javier Vega Jr. His accomplice, Ismael Hernandez-Vallejo, center, has yet to go to trial on the same charges. (Fox News)


A man from Mexico who has previously been arrested and deported multiple times for entering the U.S. illegally is now facing the death penalty after being found guilty in the 2014 murder of a Border Patrol agent in Texas.

Gustavo Tijerina-Sandoval, of La Villa, showed no emotion in court Wednesday as he was told by a judge that a jury found him guilty in the killing of Javier Vega Jr. and attempted murder of the agent’s father, Javier Vega Sr.

The younger Vega was gunned down in front of his family on August 3, 2014, after Tijerina-Sandoval and his accomplice, Ismael Hernandez-Vallejo, attempted to rob him to pay off a $3,500 debt to a man that was threatening Tijerina-Sandoval, according to court testimony and police statements.

Vega Jr., his wife and two kids had been fishing in Santa Monica with his father, and was struck in the chest with gunfire after pulling out his weapon in response. His father suffered a hip injury but Vega Jr. died in the attack. An immigration checkpoint in Sarita, where Vega Jr. worked, was later renamed in tribute to him.

“Even when not in uniform, Agent Vega exemplified the selflessness and devotion to public safety that makes an extraordinary agent, and this will help honor his service and sacrifice,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), had said about the fallen agent in 2017.

Ismael Hernandez-Vallejo has yet to go to trial for the same charges. Tijerina-Sandoval could receive the death penalty in the sentencing phase for his trial, which is set to begin Thursday afternoon.

The agent’s family embraced each other, friends and members of law enforcement working on the case after the guilty verdict was announced Wednesday, the Brownsville Herald reported.

Tijerina-Sandoval’s defense attorneys, following the announcement, reportedly said they would need to talk to him first to figure out how to proceed in the case.

Fox News previously reported in 2014, following Tijerina-Sandoval’s arrest, that he had been found guilty numerous times of crossing into the U.S. illegally through its southern border with Mexico. Hernandez-Vallejo was deported twice for doing the same, sources said.

In Hernandez-Vallejo’s first court appearance, he had expressed surprise at the charges that were facing him.

"I don't understand why I'm being accused of so many things," he said.

Hernandez-Vallejo has entered a not guilty plea in his case.

Illegal immigrant facing death penalty in 2014 murder of Border Patrol agent

In Hernandez-Vallejo’s first court appearance, he had expressed surprise at the charges that were facing him.

"I don't understand why I'm being accused of so many things," he said.

Welcome to America, Asshole.

Carry out the death penalty at sunrise...NOT 40 years from now!

Beezer
your 100 % right

Originally Posted by Beezer

Carry out the death penalty at sunrise...NOT 40 years from now!

I wouldn't be adverse to reverting back to the days when trails and public hangings were dished out within days of each other if the evidence is indisputable.

Border Patrol Agent’s Killer Sentenced to Death in South Texas



Photo: Heroes Memorial Foundation 5 Jun 2018

Six days after convicting one of two men responsible for murdering a U.S. Border Patrol agent who was fishing with his family in 2014, a jury found that the man should die by lethal injection. The other defendant is still awaiting trial.

Jurors in the border city of Brownsville, Texas, decided on the death penalty instead of an automatic life in prison in the case against Gustavo Tijerina for his role in the shooting death of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Javier Vega. Tijerina, a Mexican national who was living illegally in South Texas, was recently convicted on the charge of capital murder for his role in murdering Vega during a robbery gone wrong, Breitbart Texas reported. The man also received a conviction for attempted capital murder after shooting Vega’s father, Javier Sr.

In 2014, Vega, his wife, children, and his parents were fishing in Willacy County, near Lyford. Tijerina and Ismael Vallejo tried to rob the family, setting off a fierce firefight where Vega died and his father was wounded. Tijerina and Vallejo were captured after an intense manhunt by state, local, and federal agencies. Vallejo is expected to go to trial in the near future where prosecutors are expected to also seek the death penalty.

Vega’s death led to a battle between the former leadership of the U.S. Border Patrol and the union that represents them, the National Border Patrol Council, since the agency would not classify Vega’s murder as a line of duty death. It wasn’t until 2016 when under mounting pressure from the union and various politicians, the agency reclassified Vega’s murder.

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2018/...n-south-texas/