A U.S. immigration agent who was killed Tuesday in a part of central Mexico increasingly under the influence of drug traffickers has been identified as Jaime J. Zapata, the Los Angeles Times reports. Zapata was shot to death and another special agent was wounded when they were apparently ambushed by gunmen at a fake roadblock, the type often used by traffickers and their henchmen.

U.S. Immigration and Customs officials said Wednesday that Zapata was a native of Brownsville, Texas, and four-year veteran of the department on loan from the Laredo, Texas, ICE office. He and the second agent, whose name was not released, were attached temporarily to the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City.

The pair were driving from Mexico City toward the northern city of Monterrey when they were attacked in the state of San Luis Potosi, U.S. authorities said.

The agents "were shot in the line of duty while driving between Mexico City and Monterrey, Mexico, by unknown assailants," ICE said in a statement.

"ICE is working with the U.S. State Department, Mexican authorities and other U.S. law enforcement partners to investigate the shooting," the agency added.

Although the agents were reported initially to have survived the attack, ICE Director John Morton announced later that one of the men had succumbed to his wounds.

"This is a difficult time for ICE and especially for the families and loved ones of our agents," Morton said in a statement.

Read the entire story at latimes.com