- Details
- By Darren Thompson
AJO, Ariz.—The FBI and the Tohono O'odham Police are investigating the fatal shooting of a Tohono O’odham citizen by U.S. Border Patrol agents last Thursday.
The citizen, identified by the Tribe as Raymond Mattia, had called to report people trespassing on his property. Mattia was reportedly shot at his home at around 10 p.m. Thursday on the reservation near the U.S.-Mexico border in southern Arizona.
Agents from the Ajo Station were involved in the shooting, according to a spokesperson for Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which did not share the identity of the deceased. The CPB's Office of Personal Reponsibility is also investigating the shooting.
“Nation member Raymond Mattia lost his life in the incident,” Tohono O’odham Nation Chairman Ned Norris, Jr. said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to his family and all those impacted during this difficult time. As the investigation proceeds, the Nation expects full consideration of all related facts of the incident and an appropriate and expeditious response from relevant public safety agencies.”
Because the incident occurred on Indian lands in Arizona, which is a non-Public Law 280 state, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has jurisdiction to investigate officer-involved shootings, and other major crimes on Indian lands.
The Nation identified that the fatal shooting incident happened in Menagers Dam Village, which is only a few miles from the border. The shooting occurred roughly a week after the expiration of Title 42, a policy of both the Trump and Biden administrations designed to keep people from migrating into the country during the COVID-19 pandemic. Title 42 stems from a public health law that became law in 1944, which hopes to limit migration in the name of protecting public health.
When the measure expired at midnight on May 11, thousands of migrants, many from central and south America, attempted to cross the southern border.
Upon entering the Tohono O’odham Nation, in any of the reservation’s main highways, there is a visible U.S. Border Patrol command station.
Visitors can be stopped for any, or no reason on the reservation if border patrol agents suspect anything. In other words, it’s normal to see a U.S. Border Patrol agent or CBP vehicle on the Tohono O’odham Nation, which is the second-largest Indian reservation in the country of 3,000,000 million acres.
Officials including the U.S. Border Patrol, the FBI, and Tohono O’odham Nation said they will not be releasing any additional information pending an active investigation.
More Stories Like This
Q+A: Journalist Connie Walker Reflects on Season 3 of 'Stolen' Podcast Investigating Navajo Nation MMIP CasesNative Bidaské with Sarah Eagle Heart (Oglála Lakota) on the Indigenous Fashion Collective
Twelve Cherokee Nation Cyclists, 950 Miles: The 40th Annual Remember the Removal Bike Ride
Leona Carlyle-Kakar (Ak-Chin), Instrumental in Securing the 1st Water Rights Settlement in Indian Country, Walks On
California Moves Forward with Pilot MMIP Program
Native Perspective. Native Voices. Native News.
We launched Native News Online because the mainstream media often overlooks news that is important is Native people. We believe that everyone in Indian Country deserves equal access to news and commentary pertaining to them, their relatives and their communities. That's why the story you’ve just finished was free — and we want to keep it that way, for all readers. We hope you'll consider making a donation to support our efforts so that we can continue publishing more stories that make a difference to Native people, whether they live on or off the reservation. Your donation will help us keep producing quality journalism and elevating Indigenous voices. Any contribution of any amount — big or small — gives us a better, stronger future and allows us to remain a force for change. Donate to Native News Online today and support independent Indigenous-centered journalism. Thank you.