Two men convicted of first-degree murder in the killing of a Border Patrol agent whose death brought to light a bungled federal gun-tracking operation have been sentenced to life in prison.
Jesus Leonel Sanchez-Meza and Ivan Soto-Barraza also were sentenced Wednesday in federal court in Tucson, Arizona, to additional prison time for other convictions tied to the case. Those sentences will run concurrently with the life terms.
The December 2010 killing of Brian Terry exposed the Fast and Furious operation in which federal agents allowed criminals to buy guns with the intention of tracking them. But the agency lost most of the guns, including two found at the scene of Terry's death.
Authorities say Sanchez-Meza and Soto-Barraza were part of a crew planning to rob drug smugglers when they encountered border agents and got into a shootout.
