Three US Customs agents shot, off coast of Puerto Rico

Off the coast of Puerto Rico, three U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers were wounded after exchanging gunfire with individuals "on board a suspected smuggling vessel."

According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the incident on Thursday morning around 8 a.m. resulted in multiple gunshot wounds to the agents. It occurred 144 miles off the Puerto Rican coast in Cabo Rojo.

According to the organization, an investigation is ongoing as the agents are being transported to the Puerto Rico Trauma Center.

The policemen belonged to the agency's Air and Marine Operations division, according to Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. At a congressional hearing, he stated that he had received information on the "tragic loss of one of our front-line men" and that "many others were badly injured."

“These are brave members of our air and marine operations within U.S. Customs and Border Protection,” Mayorkas told a Senate panel Thursday in disclosing the shooting. “So the difficulty of this job cannot be compared to the difficulty that our frontline personnel face every day. Their bravery and selfless service should be recognized.”

About 1,650 individuals are employed by Air and Marine Operations, one of CBP's smallest divisions and the biggest law enforcement organization in the country. To halt the unlawful transportation of persons, narcotics, and other products, it deploys aircraft and maritime assets.

In the fiscal year 2021, the team discovered 218 "conventional aircraft incursions" on American soil, confiscated 1.1 million pounds of drugs and $73.1 million in illegal currency, made more than 122,000 arrests, and detained 518 people.

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