DOUGLAS, Ariz. —
A federal jury has convicted a former Border Patrol agent of abducting and sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl in southern Arizona.
Aaron Mitchell was found guilty of both a federal civil rights offense and a kidnapping charge for an incident reported in 2022.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Mitchell traveled to Douglas and abducted a teenage girl.
Evidence presented during the two-week trial indicated Mitchell approached the student as she was waiting for school to start and “asked for her papers” before showing his law enforcement credentials.
He then ordered the girl into his car and said he was going to transport her to the police station.
Prosecutors said Mitchell then restrained her and brought the victim back to his apartment where he sexually assaulted her for several hours. Mitchell eventually transported the girl back to school and told her not to tell anyone.
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Investigators later learned Mitchell had made an internet search while he was holding the girl captive to find out “how long it takes to smother someone,” prosecutors said.
The former Border Patrol agent is now facing a life sentence.
“This defendant dishonored his badge and his colleagues by ignoring his oath and harming the most vulnerable among us,” U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino said in a statement.