A small group of heavily armed men with AR-15 style guns was spotted just north of Mexico last week and pursued, according to the U.S. Border Patrol.
Agents on routine patrol discovered the men last Tuesday shortly before 5 p.m. According to investigators, the four men, who were armed with assault rifles that were loaded with high-capacity magazines, were spotted in the San Ysidro Mountains, about 0.3 miles north of the border and a little over 12 miles east of the San Ysidro Port of Entry.
After spotting the Border Patrol, the men dropped their guns, one of which was equipped with a scope, and fled south. Agents immediately contacted their law-enforcement counterparts in Mexico as well as Border Patrol's agency's tactical-response unit.
“This type of dangerous activity must not be tolerated,” San Diego chief patrol agent Aaron M. Heitke is quoted, in part, in a news release issued on Monday. “When events like this occur, we think of our fallen Border Patrol agents Bryan Terry, Robert Rosas and others who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in service to this nation."
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Once the agents were able to determine the area was safe, a search of the location yielded the four assault weapons, as well as 17 magazines.
All of the suspects managed to elude capture, according to the Border Patrol, though investigators are continuing efforts to identify them.
Editor's Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated one of the firearms mentioned was "equipped with a scone."
