Conflicting stories in Border Patrol officer's fatal shooting of woman

The investigation into a Border Patrol agent's fatal shooting of a 32-year-old mother of five continued in southern California over the weekend, as witnesses and law enforcement officials gave different accounts of what led to the incident.

Police said the agent fired after Valeria Alvarado struck him with her car Friday and drove several hundred yards with him on the hood.

The shooting occurred about five miles north of the Mexican border as plainclothes agents were looking to serve a felony warrant in the area to someone other than Alvarado, Border Patrol Deputy Chief Rodney Scott told the San Diego Union-Tribune website.

Scott said the agent was stuck atop the car as Alvarado drove.

"Fearing for his life, he discharged his weapon to get the vehicle to stop," Scott said. No other agents fired.

Alvarado was declared dead at the scene, and the agent was taken to a hospital. His injuries were not clear.

On Saturday, Chula Vista police officials went door-to-door looking for residents who may have seen the events unfold, U-T San Diego reported.

Hector Salazar, one of several neighbors who witnessed the incident, told the newspaper he saw a man in civilian clothes on the hood of a black car aiming a gun at the windshield.

Salazar said the man started pulling the trigger, and he heard about five shots. Moments later, other plainclothes agents approached the car, he said.

But Ayanna Evans, who said she witnessed the incident as she looked out the window of her nearby apartment, told U-T San Diego that she did not see the agent on top of the car. Evans said she saw the vehicle backing up slowly as a man walked toward the car. She then heard gunfire.

Another witness, Prince Watson, told the newspaper he did not see anyone on the hood of the car as it drove in reverse.

"She wasn't speeding or driving erratic at all. I heard the agent say, 'Stop.' He was in the street and started shooting and walking toward the car," Watson said.

After talking to investigators, family members including Alvarado's husband and cousin told U-T San Diego that Alvarado was a housewife and mother of five children ranging from ages 3 to 17 who went by the name Monique.

"I love her to the fullest. That's my heart," husband Gilbert Alvarado said. "Where's the evidence my wife threatened a trained officer? I want justice."

Family members said Valeria Alvarado grew up in Chula Vista where the shooting took place but had been living about five miles away in the Southcrest neighborhood of San Diego, and they did not know why she was in her former hometown.

The person named in the warrant the agents were serving was not apprehended, Scott said.