By Police1 Staff
PINE VALLEY, Calif. — Dash cam video has been released of a fatal incident between Border Patrol agents and a suspect involving the deployment of an ECD.
NBC San Diego reports plainclothes agents driving in unmarked vehicles attempted to stop suspect Alex Martin for driving on the wrong side of the highway in March 2012 when the deadly incident occurred.
Martin engaged in a pursuit with agents that ended after he ran over spike strips. Martin’s family, who has filed a lawsuit in connection to the death, claims the suspect did not stop because he did not know the plainclothes cops were law enforcement officers.
After Martin’s vehicle came to a halt, one agent deployed an ECD. The vehicle then burst into flames, killing Martin, who was inside.
The family’s attorney believes gas inside the vehicle was ignited by the ECD, causing the explosion.
Border Patrol officials maintain agents followed correct procedure during the stop. The family’s lawsuit argues that agents caused Martin’s death and did nothing to attempt to save him.
Martin reportedly had a prior run-in with the law before his death. In 2011, he fled the scene of a DUI accident and led police on a pursuit, according to the report.