Border Patrol agent arrested for allegedly assaulting Long Beach police dies, authorities confirm
The 29-year-old U.S. Border Patrol agent who was arrested last month for allegedly assaulting Long Beach police officers has died, according to authorities.
Isaiah Hodgson, who was charged with three felony counts of resisting an executive officer, one felony count of battery with injury on a peace officer and misdemeanor charges involving carrying a loaded firearm for an incident that occurred in early July, died on Aug. 22 in Hemet, according to the Riverside County Coroner.
Riverside County Sheriff's Office deputies said that they were called to a home in an unincorporated part of Hemet known as Valle Vista at around 12:45 p.m., after a man was found unresponsive.
"When deputies arrived, they located the male and pronounced him deceased," said a statement from RSO. "Deputies did not locate any evidence of foul play."
His cause of death remains under investigation.
On July 7, police say Hodgson entered the women's restroom of a Shoreline Village restaurant, where he allegedly approached a woman who saw his firearm. That woman told the restaurant manager, which led to Hodgson being asked to leave the business.
According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, LBPD officers were eventually called and found Hodgson intoxicated. A security guard told them that Hodgson was holding a firearm magazine and armed with the firearm on his waistband.
The DA's statement noted that Hodgson resisted attempts to take him into custody, adding "became agitated and physical with the officers." One of the officers was allegedly injured in the incident.
Hodgson was reportedly off-duty at the time, prosecutors said.
The arrest occurred just weeks after Hodgson was involved in the contentious arrest of 20-year-old Walmart employee Adrien Andrew Martinez, a U.S. citizen, in Pico Rivera during an immigration operation. The incident drew the ire of many in the community, prompting demonstrations in the days following the arrest.
Cell phone video shows the encounter between Hodgson and Martinez, who told CBS News Los Angeles that he approached the agents when they used what he called "unnecessary force" to detain an elderly Latino janitor outside of the Walmart.
"I was just speaking, like telling them that's wrong, what you're doing is not right," Martinez said at the time. "They took it the wrong way and threw me to the floor, and from then a man grabs me by my neck and throws me into a trash can thing."
In response to request for statement on Hodgson's death, the Los Angeles County Public Defenders Office shared a statement that said: "We have been made aware of Mr. Hodgson's passing. We have no additional information and ask that you respect the family's privacy during this time."
CBS News Los Angeles has also reached out to the Riverside County Sheriff's Office, Hemet Police Department, Department of Homeland Security and Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office for statements, but has not yet heard back.
