El Paso Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Assaulting Security Officer at the Paso Del Norte Bridge Resulting in Death

United States Attorney Johnny Sutton announced that in El Paso this morning, 30-year-old Pablo Aragon was sentenced to five years in federal prison for assaulting a security officer causing serious bodily injury at the Paso Del Norte (PDN) bridge on New Year’s day.

United States District Judge David Briones sentenced Aragon to 57 months' imprisonment for Count I–assault resulting in serious bodily injury; 60 months' imprisonment for Count II–aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury; and, 57 months' imprisonment for Count III–assault causing bodily injury, all to run concurrent. In addition, Judge Briones ordered Aragon to be placed under supervised release for a period of three years after completing his prison term.

On June 3, 2008, a federal jury found that on January 1, 2008, Aragon initiated a confrontation with the security guard at the pedestrian toll booth at the PDN bridge in downtown El Paso. Evidence showed the defendant struck the security guard on the left side of his head near the eye causing a half-inch laceration. The guard struggled with the defendant to resist the attack. However, the defendant was able to break free, walk away, then return to issue four to five more blows to the officer. The defendant fled the scene and was subsequently apprehended by Border Patrol agents. The guard was taken to Thomason Hospital were he subsequently died. An autopsy performed by the El Paso County Medical Examiners Office concluded that the security officer died as a result of a heart attack brought about and caused by the assault.

This case was investigated by the El Paso Violent Crimes Task Force made up of investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol, and the El Paso Police Department. It was prosecuted for the government by Assistant United States Attorneys William F. Lewis, Jr. and George Leal.

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