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BROWNSVILLE - The family of ICE Special Agent Jaime Zapata is fighting for the details surrounding his death. They want to know how the guns that killed him made it into Mexico and what the agents were doing there on special assignment.

"Why was there a writing directive that no U.S. agents should be on this highway? Why was Jaime Zapata and Victor Avila sent on that highway," says family attorney Ray Thomas.

Those answers don't come easy.

Thomas and fellow attorney Trey Martinez have one job: to ensure those responsible for the death of Zapata are brought to justice.

They've sent out numerous requests for information to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Department of Justice, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. They've received no answers.

Even a request to inspect the SUV Zapata and Avila were riding in when they were attacked was denied.

The two were on assignment in Mexico when they were ambushed by Zeta gang members. Zapata was killed, Avila wounded.

The government says release of information could jeopardize their work. Martinez and Thomas are determined to get answers.

"The family wants to hear it from the horse's mouth. They want to hear it from the government," said Martinez.
The attorneys have dug up information from both sides of the border.

"One of the questions that's come up of us trying to find out facts, if any of the weapons used were part of a gun-walking operation from the U.S. into Mexico," said Martinez.

Specifically did the U.S. or any agency allow weapons used in the shooting to be purchased here and moved into Mexico.

"We have since tried to piece together some of this. And what the family is looking for in answers," Martinez said.
That search led them to the Osorio brothers from Lancaster, Texas.

"There are two indictments that have come out of the Dallas area with the Osorio brothers which we have come to believe to be linked to Fast and Furious, which is a gun-walking operation," says Martinez.

In the weeks following Zapata's death, Ranferi Osorio and his brother Otilio Osorio were arrested. The report from the ATF shows one of the firearms traced directly to Otilio Osorio was used in Zapata's murder.

Thomas explained the order in which things happened is key to their investigation.

"The government is telling us and has told the public that the Osorio brothers came under their investigation in early November 2010, when there was a controlled delivery of 12 draco arms to a confidential informant of the ATF," he said.

Those weapons were recovered in Laredo before they were crossed over the border. Thomas says the weapon used in the Zapata-Avila shooting was bought in October. He believes the feds already knew about the brothers by then.

"Our sources have told us, we have documents confirming the Osorio brothers were under ATF investigation and surveillance as early as June and July of that same year," said Thomas.

The attorneys told us when Otilio Osorio purchased the weapons from a firearm dealer in October 2010, the only way the sale could go through is if Osorio filled out an application which had to go through ATF to have the sale approved.

"We are convinced that the weapon that was used - and found used in the murder of Jaime Zapata, confirmed in ballistic testing - was sold to Osorio with the government's knowledge and approval," says Thomas.

A program otherwise known as Fast and Furious.

The shooting has another Texas connection documented by the government.

"There's also been recently a plea in Houston by a Manuel Barba. In plea papers it states one weapon purchased through a straw purchaser and transported into Mexico is linked to the incident regarding Jaime Zapata and Victor Avila," says Trey Martinez.

The government has not brought charges against Barba or the Osorio brothers in connection with the Zapata's death.

CHANNEL 5 NEWS contacted the northern and southern U.S. district courts in Texas. We asked why were the men never charged, considering the evidence available.

In a statement, they responded, "The case against Otilio Osorio remains pending," and "Barba was charged in a superceding indictment. Both cases are being handled by the Justice Department's Criminal Division and the district of Washington, D.C."

Martinez and Thomas said they're at a point now where they have no choice but to file a lawsuit to get the answers they want.

A mother and father wait for the answers to come as they hold on to memories.

"We don't want our son forgotten. He was very young. He had so much to offer, had a lot of things going for him. We want to make sure he's not forgotten," says Mary Zapata.

New legislation named in honor of Jaime Zapata will add his name to a special task force.

The Border Enforcement Security Task Force or BEST Initiative is comprised of multi-agency teams. It was formed to identify, disrupt, and dismantle criminal organizations posing threats to border security. Special Agent Jaime Zapata served on the BEST team prior to his death. His name is now attached to that unit forever.