Citizen Staff
Man, 31, found dead in Border Patrol cell
By LUKE TURF
lturf@tucsoncitizen.com
A man was found dead in a Tucson Border Patrol detention facility cell early yesterday morning, the agency said.
The 31-year-old Mexican man was found by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent at local Border Patrol headquarters, 1970 W. Ajo Way, said Border Patrol spokesman Charles Griffin.
Border Patrol spokesman Andy Adame wouldn’t identify the man because the investigation is ongoing and the family has not been notified.
A spokesperson for the Mexican consulate in Tucson didn’t return a phone call yesterday.
An agent noticed the unconscious man, whom medical personnel tried to revive with CPR, during a head count about 5:45 a.m., Griffin said.
He was pronounced dead at 6:10 a.m. The Tucson police department is investigating.
“As it stands right now, it’s an unknown cause of death and we are expecting more information from an autopsy scheduled for tomorrow morning,” police spokesman Sgt. Marco Borboa said yesterday.
Slaying suspect caught on border
Citizen Staff Report
news@tucsoncitizen.com
Border Patrol agents this week arrested a Mexican illegal immigrant wanted on homicide charges in Georgia, an agency news release stated.
Alejandro Gonzalez-Silva, 27, was caught about three miles west of Naco. Agents discovered the homicide charges when his fingerprints were checked against a national database.
According to the Border Patrol, Silva is in Cochise County Sheriff’s Department custody awaiting extradition.
Another Mexican man, Francisco Pegueros-Delvalle, 25, was caught coming into the country illegally Thursday in Douglas. He was wanted for allegedly bludgeoning someone to death with a hammer in South Carolina.
More than 9,000 illegal immigrants with criminal records have been caught by the Border Patrol since October 1, according to the release. Of those, 378 had outstanding arrest warrants.
Az athletes score at Transplant Games
By ANNE T. DENOGEAN
adenogea@tucsoncitizen.com
Arizona athletes brought home 24 medals from the recent 2004 U.S. Transplant Games.
The Olympic-style competition is for recipients of lifesaving transplants of all kinds. More than 1,400 athletes from across the country participated in the games, held July 27-29 at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Forty-one athletes from Tucson, Sierra Vista and Phoenix competed in 17 sports.
Teen’s car stuck in NW Side wash
By ROMANO CEDILLOS
cedillos@tucsoncitizen.com
Warning: Relatively calm weather in Tucson is no guarantee against flash floods.
That was demonstrated last night as a Tucson motorist became stuck in the Cañada del Oro Wash at West Overton Road, said George Good, district chief with Rural/Metro Fire.
While much of the area stayed dry, a gauge in Oro Valley recorded 1.26 inches of rain, said Steve Reedy, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Gauges elsewhere in the wash’s watershed recorded .91 and .35 of an inch.
The driver and passenger of the Honda Acura, both 17-year-old girls, walked out of the wash on their own after getting stuck at about 8:45 p.m., Good said.
The driver said barricades were not set up, he said.
Good warns motorists to avoid washes when any amount of water is present.
“In most cases you can’t judge how much water is present. What looks like a small amount may be much more because you can’t see the bottom,” he said.