Body of a Texas National Guard member found, identified 3 days after he tried to pull migrants from the Rio Grande River
By Amir Vera, Melanie Zanona, David Shortell and Claudia Dominguez, CNN
(CNN) -- The body of Spc. Bishop Evans, the Texas Army National Guard member who went missing three days ago, was found and identified Monday, according to US Rep. Tony Gonzales.
Evans on Friday attempted to rescue two migrants who were crossing the Rio Grande River. He was assigned to Operation Lone Star, Gov. Greg Abbott's effort to combat what he has called a crisis at the US-Mexico border.
"This young soldier made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of protecting and serving our country. He will never be forgotten," Gonzales said.
The Texas Military Department (TMD) said that Evans was a 22-year-old field artilleryman from Arlington, Texas, and had served in the guard for almost two years. Evans was deployed to Kuwait with assignments in Iraq as part of Operation Spartan Shield before serving on Texas' southern border, according to the release.
Authorities have said that Evans attempted to help the pair of migrants as they crossed the border near Eagle Pass, Texas. The migrants are suspected of being "involved in illicit transnational narcotics trafficking" and are currently in the custody of US Customs and Border Patrol.
Evans was not authorized to enter the water, officials said Thursday.
"For their own safety, all Service Members assigned to security points along the border are not authorized to enter the water," the Texas Military Department said in a statement.
"This does not reduce human instinct. SGT Evans selflessly acted to rescue migrants who appeared to be drowning as they illegally crossed the river from Mexico to the U.S. His act was heroic. His loss is tragic," said officials, who are continuing to investigate the incident.
Abbott released a statement earlier this week saying "we are eternally grateful for the way SPC Evans heroically served his state and country."
The governor thanked the Texas National Guard, the Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Parks and Wildlife, Border Patrol and local law enforcement for their efforts in trying to locate Evans.
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