An on-duty U.S. Border Patrol agent who died from injuries in a rollover crash near Benson was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected from a patrol truck, the state police said Thursday.
Agent Alexander Irving Giannini was driving the Dodge patrol truck east on Interstate 10 at about 7:40 a.m. Wednesday when "the truck's left rear tire failed when the tread separated from the tire," said Officer Carrick Cook, a state Department of Public Safety spokesman, in an email Thursday.
LawOfficer: Border Patrol Agent Killed in Arizona Crash
"The truck rotated clockwise and traveled right and off of the asphalt portion of the roadway," Cook said. "When the truck entered the right dirt shoulder, it began to roll over."
The truck came to a final rest upright about 40 feet from the interstate, Cook said.
Giannini was ejected from the truck while it rolled, and passenger Agent Van Keith Hartwigsen, who was wearing a seat belt, remained in the truck, Cook said.
Giannini, 24, and Hartwigsen, whose age was not released, were both flown by medical helicopter to University of Arizona Medical Center in Tucson, authorities said.
Giannini died during the flight to the hospital, Cook said.
Hartwigsen "suffered minor injuries and is expected to have a full recovery," said Agent Nicole Ballistrea, a spokeswoman for the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector.
No further information was released about Giannini or Hartwigsen by federal authorities.
