Fast and Furious Suspect Charged in Border Agent Brian Terrys Death Arrested in Mexico

AP

Mexican authorities said Friday they have arrested a suspect in the shooting death of U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry, whose killing is at the center of the investigation into the flawed federal gun-walking operation known as Fast and Furious.

Jesus Leonel Sanchez Meza, one of the five men charged with Terry’s murder, was arrested Thursday in Sonora state, the Associated Press reported.

The five are accused of being involved in the shootout that led to Terry’s death near the U.S.-Mexico border in December 2010. Two guns found at the scene were linked to the Justice Department operation, during which weapons were allowed to flow across the border untracked.

U.S. authorities in July revealed the identities of Jesus Rosario Favela-Astorga, 31, Ivan Soto-Barraza, 34, Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes, 34, and a man identified as Lionel Portillo-Meza in order to seek the public’s help in finding them. The fifth suspect was shot during the gunfight and has been in custody since the night of the shooting. According to the AP, Mexican police said Lionel Portillo-Meza is an alias of the man arrested in Sonora.

Fast and Furious has been the subject of an congressional probe by Republican lawmakers. Attorney General Eric Holder was found in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over documents related to the investigation. President Barack Obama has asserted executive privilege over many of the documents.

With Sanchez’s arrest, three suspects in Terry’s death still remain at large.