Funeral held for US border agent whose death not explained

Appetite for construction: Inside the multi-million dollar mansions of American food titans - like Kellogg and Ghirardelli - paid for by the contents of your shopping basket
'That’s just how you do it in Denmark': Actress jailed 20 years ago for leaving her toddler OUTSIDE a New York restaurant while she had dinner says she would do it again
Man in a red van tries to CUT INTO President Trump's motorcade near Mar-a-Lago while making 'obscene gestures and expletives'
Will Harry and his girl announce engagement on TUESDAY? Palace courtiers primed for Meghan's moment 'this week' after a series of last-minute meetings
Amelia Earhart 'was executed by the Japanese': New 'witness' account claims aviation pioneer was held in Saipan before being killed - and the US military collected her body and covered it up
Robert Mueller investigates Mike Flynn over involvement in documentary about exiled cleric accused by Turkey's president of orchestrating failed 2016 coup
'Who's the boss?': Confusion grips federal agency as Trump and outgoing Consumer Protection director pick new leaders just hours apart
'They represent our Nation to the WORLD very poorly': Trump hits out at CNN International - claiming Fox is a better embodiment of the American people
New York Mets' Noah Syndergaard pokes fun at Trump's tweet saying he took himself out of consideration to be Time's 'Person of the Year'
Veteran CBS engineer, 65, accidentally hangs himself performing 'auto erotic act' in hotel closet while dressed in women's panties and a bra - and now his widow wants $1.4million from the network
Funeral held for US border agent 'attacked' alongside his partner whose death was used by President Trump to push his Wall agenda
Want more hits on Tinder? The unlikely thing you need to mention in your dating profile that will GUARANTEE you more matches
Pregnant Florida woman, 22, stabbed her OWN pit bull to death when it attacked two other dogs before turning on her mother and sister
Award-winning author and professor at UVA is accused unwanted sexual touching and making vulgar remarks to female students
GMA meteorologist Ginger Zee reveals she tried to kill herself with pills, survived an abusive boyfriend, and twice jilted her fiancee in shocking new book
Radical new type of bone marrow transplant could benefit leukaemia patients by cutting the chance of their blood cancer returning
The five mistakes to avoid when styling your dream home, revealed - and why you need to STOP following interiors rules
'We love and miss you Dad': Ron Howard shares moving tribute to his actor father Rance after he dies aged 89
Vladimir Putin is using fake news just like tanks and missiles...and his goal is to weaken the West, writes Nick Robinson
Twenty minutes of terror in the arena of death: How 30 masked ISIS jihadis used burnt-out cars to trap Egyptian worshippers outside a mosque before killing 305 - including 27 children
Now that's checking out! 'Drugged-up' California cashiers appear to fall asleep at the register as they serve a customer
Diego Maradona calls for his own daughter to be JAILED after accusing her of being part of plot to steal $4.5million from him
Ignore meal times completely, catch up in the morning and change your hangover cure: The simple tricks to help you beat the weekend blowout this silly season
Haunting evidence photos include crime scene surveillance, rambling handwritten letters and shotgun of jilted thug who was found guilty of slaughtering two exes and another woman in 24-hour revenge rampage

The funeral for US border agent Rogelio Martinez, 36, was held at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in El Paso, Texas, on Saturday
Martinez was found November 18 in a culvert along with his seriously injured partner, whose name has not been released, in a rugged area near Van Hor
'It honors him to see law enforcement agencies from across the United States' attend the service, Border Patrol spokesman Ramiro Cordero said
Attorney General Jeff Session was scheduled to attend the funeral but it was not clear if he was there
President Donald Trump used the death to highlight his support for building a wall on the border with Mexico

By Associated Press and Matthew Wright For Dailymail.com

Published: 11:15 EST, 25 November 2017 | Updated: 23:30 EST, 25 November 2017

e-mail

View
comments

Family, friends and law enforcement officers converged on an adobe Catholic church in El Paso, Texas, Saturday to mourn a Border Patrol agent whose death last weekend in the rugged and remote Big Bend area has not been explained.

Bagpipes played as Border Patrol pallbearers in green uniforms carried the U.S. flag-draped coffin of Rogelio Martinez, 36, into Our Lady of Guadalupe Church for a private funeral Mass. He died in a hospital Sunday of head and other injuries.

'It honors him to see law enforcement agencies from across the United States' attend the service, Border Patrol spokesman Ramiro Cordero told reporters outside the church.

The funeral for US border agent Rogelio Martinez, 36, was held at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in El Paso, Texas, on Saturday. He died on Sunday due to head and other injuries

'It honors him to see law enforcement agencies from across the United States' attend the service, Border Patrol spokesman Ramiro Cordero said

Border Patrol pallbearers carry Border Patrol agent Rogelio Martinez to a graveside service at Restlawn Cemetery

Martinez was found Nov. 18 in a culvert along with his seriously injured partner, whose name has not been released, in a rugged area near Van Horn, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) from the border with Mexico and 110 miles (175 kilometers) southeast of El Paso.

Attorney General Jeff Session was scheduled to attend the funeral but it was not clear if he was there. Following the funeral, a graveside ceremony was held at Restlawn Cemetery in El Paso.

Speculation about the cause of death has run rampant with several politicians saying the agent was attacked, including President Donald Trump, who used the death to highlight his support for building a wall on the border with Mexico.

Martinez was found November 18 in a culvert along with his seriously injured partner, whose name has not been released, in a rugged area near Van Hor

'Border Patrol Officer killed at Southern Border, another badly hurt. We will seek out and bring to justice those responsible. We will, and must, build the Wall!' Trump said in a tweet on November 19

'Border Patrol Officer killed at Southern Border, another badly hurt. We will seek out and bring to justice those responsible. We will, and must, build the Wall!' Trump said in a tweet on November 19.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican, also publicly commented on the deadly incident that resulted in Martinez's death, characterizing it as an attack.

Cruz said in a statement the nation is grateful 'for the courage and sacrifice of our border agents.'

He also said that what happened on Sunday is a 'stark reminder' that an 'unsecured border' poses a threat to the safety of the communities and border agents tasked with protecting them.

Attorney General Jeff Session was scheduled to attend the funeral but it was not clear if he was there

The hearse carrying Border Patrol agent Rogelio Martinez arrives at Restlawn Cemetery

Governor Abbott tweeted in a similar vain: 'Our prayers are with the families of this Border Patrol Agent who was killed & the other who was injured in this attack in Texas,' he wrote. 'Our resources must be increased to prevent these attacks in the future.'

Special Agent in Charge Emmerson Buie Jr. in the FBI's El Paso office has said investigators were treating the incident as a 'potential assault,' but they could not rule out other scenarios.

Representatives from the border patrol's union have insisted that the incident was an attack, based on the accounts of other agents who responded to the scene. Chris Cabrera, a spokesman for the National Border Patrol Council, told The Associated Press that agents responding to the scene called it 'grisly.'

However, a U.S. official with knowledge of the investigation told The Associated Press on Monday that the agents may have fallen, and that the surviving agent had no memory of his duty-shift. The official spoke on condition of anonymity and is not authorized to speak publicly.

After the death of Martinez, his father told the El Paso Times that his son loved his job. Jose Martinez said his son would call him every day to say goodbye for the night.

'And I would tell him, "Take care of yourself son. God bless you,"' the father said.

After the death of Martinez, his father told the El Paso Times that his son loved his job. Jose Martinez said his son would call him every day to say goodbye for the night