Dallas Man Charged With Firing at ATF Agent

A Dallas man who allegedly shot at an ATF agent in an apparent fit of road rage has been federally charged, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.

Michael Fagan, 30, was charged on April 19 with assaulting or impeding a federal officer. He made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée Toliver on Friday.

“Mr. Fagan’s behavior two weeks ago was allegedly violent and hostile; two adjectives that don’t go well with firearm possession. While acting in this manner, he encountered a highly trained and dedicated ATF Special Agent. Luckily for the citizens of Dallas, that ATF Special Agent was able to put a stop to Mr. Fagan’s alleged acts of violence,” stated ATF Dallas Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey C. Boshek II. “I would like to thank our partners at the Dallas Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the United States Attorney’s Office for aggressively investigating this vicious act upon one of my agents and friend.”

According to the complaint, around 8 p.m. on April 6, an ATF agent stopped at a red light near the entrance to the Dallas Arboretum noticed an SUV use the far-right turn lane to bypass all the other stopped cars and proceed through the intersection, running the red light.

A few blocks later, the agent observed the SUV’s driver, later identified as Mr. Fagan,  inside the vehicle yelling and flailing his arms. Thinking the driver might be experiencing an emergency, the agent rolled down his front passenger window and asked if the driver was okay.

Mr. Fagan allegedly opened his driver-side door and began yelling incoherently at the agent, who instructed Mr. Fagan to get back in his vehicle. Mr. Fagan re-entered his vehicle, leaned over the passenger seat, and turned around to face the agent allegedly holding a black semiautomatic pistol in his hand.

The agent yelled “no,” or “don’t,” ducked down below the dashboard, and heard a gun discharge twice. The agent drew his weapon and fired three shots.  Mr. Fagan fell back into the SUV.

He fled the scene to meet up with his girlfriend, who called 911 to report Mr. Fagan had been shot and took him to Baylor hospital.

In law enforcement interviews, Mr. Fagan acknowledged he had been drinking at a local club prior to the shooting. He claimed the driver of a mid-sized Chevrolet that had been tailgating him fired at him, and denied firing more than one round in the air in response.

No cars resembling the Chevy Mr. Fagan described were located in surveillance footage from the area and day in question. At the scene, law enforcement recovered five casings: three consistent with the duty ammunition carried by the ATF agent, and two consistent with another firearm.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Mr. Fagan is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives’ Dallas Field Division, the Dallas Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Withers is prosecuting the case.