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Funeral for slain ICE agent set for Tuesday

By the CNN Wire Staff
Special Agent Jaime Zapata was shot and killed February 15 while traveling between Mexico City and Monterrey.
Special Agent Jaime Zapata was shot and killed February 15 while traveling between Mexico City and Monterrey.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • Jaime Zapata was ambushed by a Mexican cartel last week, authorities say
  • He will be buried in his hometown of Brownsville, Texas
  • His dedication was unparalleled, said his brother

(CNN) -- A rosary service and funeral were scheduled this week for Jaime Zapata, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who was killed in Mexico last week.

The slain agent will be buried in his hometown of Brownsville, Texas. He was killed and another agent was injured on a highway in Mexico's San Luis Potosi state after they were run off the road by two vehicles believed to be driven by members of the Zetas drug cartel, authorities have said.

Zapata, 32, was based in Laredo, Texas, and was in Mexico on temporary assignment.

"His dedication to service and integrity was unparalleled. He was the life and soul of our family and a joy to his friends and colleagues," Zapata's brother, Amador, said in a statement.

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"Jaime was a son, a brother, a boyfriend, and a caring, loving person," Amador Zapata said. "He grew up giving of himself and was always committed to doing the right thing. I firmly believe he is in heaven now, continuing to work for what is right."

Outside of that statement, the Zapata family has requested privacy and has not talked with the media. However, the public outpouring in the community was so great that the Rosary service and funeral will be open to the public.

The Rosary service, in which mourners pray for the repose of the soul of the departed, will be at 7 p.m. Monday at the Brownsville Events Center. The funeral mass will take place in the same place at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday. He will be buried at Rose Lawn Gardens Cemetery.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Attorney General Eric Holder will speak at the funeral.