Off-duty CBP Officer ‘Fired 11 Shots During Road Rage Incident In El Paso’

An off-duty Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer who allegedly fired his gun 11 times at a teenage driver in a road rage incident has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Hector Luis Zubia, 34, claims that the 19-year-old driver had initiated the incident in El Paso, Texas, by driving toward him, and bumping his truck at least twice, once on the passenger side and once in the vehicle’s rear, according to court documents.
But police officers say his account is inconsistent with their investigation and that Zubia had fired at the young man, identified simply as Cardoza, as he fled the scene.
A CBP spokesperson told Newsweek: “On September 6, 2024, at approximately 10:00 p.m., an off-duty U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer discharged his service weapon following a traffic incident on Paisano Drive. This incident is under investigation by the El Paso Police Department. CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility is reviewing the matter.
“CBP stresses honor and integrity in every aspect of our mission, and the overwhelming majority of CBP employees and officers perform their duties with honor and distinction, working tirelessly every day to keep our country safe. We do not tolerate misconduct or abuse within our ranks, and we cooperate fully with all criminal or administrative investigations of alleged misconduct by any of our personnel, whether it occurs on or off duty. An arrest is merely an allegation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.”
Newsweek reached out to Zubia’s lawyer out of office hours for comment.
Zubia, who was still in uniform, told law enforcement officials that he was driving home after completing his shift and exiting a port of entry located at 1000 South El Paso when the alleged road rage incident started near the traffic lights at St. Vrain and Paisano in September.
The CBP officer told police that, after Cardoza bumped his truck at least twice, he stopped his pickup truck on the Loop 375 East ramp from Paisano, exited the vehicle, drew his firearm at the accuser, and told him to stop, according to court documents.
Zubia claimed he intended to “get him to stop, and then I was going to try to take him into custody because I don’t know what’s going on, why he’s doing this.”
The CBP agent claimed that while pointing his weapon at the accuser, he reversed his vehicle and drove toward Zubia, which prompted him to open fire.
The 19-year-old victim was later found along with his vehicle, which had damage after the incident. He told authorities that Zubia had cut him off during the incident.
The victim also claimed that Zubia had stopped his truck, which caused his vehicle to hit the truck’s rear. The victim told police that he did not hear Zubia shouting and only the sound of gunshots, prompting him to flee the scene.
Detectives later interviewed a witness who stated that Zubia’s truck appeared to be the aggressor, according to court documents.
The witness also reported seeing the victim reverse before hearing gunfire.
After inspecting both vehicles, police confirmed that the victim’s car had struck the rear of Zubia’s vehicle. However, the damage to the passenger side of Zubia’s truck was determined to be caused by his own gunfire during the alleged road rage incident.
Zubia was released from the El Paso County Jail on a $250,000 bond, according to the El Paso Police Department.
El Paso Police Department said in a statement: “On September 6th, 2024, police were called to the border highway on a reported shooting. When police arrived, they met with Zubia, who reported that another vehicle (Saturn Aura), later identified as the victim’s, struck his car at least twice.
“The investigation revealed both vehicles came to a stop at the entrance ramp to 375 East. Zubia alleged to have fired a gun at Cardoza when he drove at him. The Crimes Against Persons Unit took over the investigation. Through their investigation, it was revealed that Zubia’s accounts of what happened were not consistent with the evidence at the scene.”
Update 10/24/24, 10:37 a.m. ET: This story was updated with comment from CBP.