Crime & Safety

2 Camp Pendleton Marines Killed, 1 Seriously Hurt In U.S.-Mexico Border Crash

The U.S. Marines were deployed to patrol the U.S.-Mexico border in New Mexico at the time of the rollover crash. One other Marine was hurt.

OCEANSIDE, CA — Two Marines stationed at Camp Pendleton, on assignment to patrol the U.S.-Mexico border, were killed this week, and a third was in "serious condition" after a rollover crash, according to U.S. Northern Command.

The Marines were stationed out of Camp Pendleton, the Washington Post reports, as part of the U.S. Northern Command Joint Task Force on the Southern Border, aiming to "tactically synchronize Department of Defense Efforts and seal the southern border," according to that agency.

Their names were being withheld pending notification of next of kin.

On Tuesday morning, shortly before 9 a.m., New Mexico time, the three service members working as part of the Joint Task Force-Southern Border crashed their vehicle. According to original reports from the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office, the crash occurred near the Santa Teresa Border Patrol Station.

All three were taken by air ambulance to a nearby hospital. Only one survived.

"The incident is the first known deaths linked to President Donald Trump's expanded mission at the southern border to crack down on illegal immigration," according to the post. No other information was immediately available.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

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