SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) — The Texas Department of Public Safety honored their fallen who made the ultimate sacrifice with memorials dedicated to Sgt Paul Mooney, Special Agent Anthony Salas, and Trooper Javier Arana Jr.

The memorials were donated by We the People and will be on display in front of the DPS Regional Command Building in El Paso, Texas.

On January 22, 2022, Special Agent Salas died in the line of duty due to a vehicle accident while supporting Operation Lone Star. Salas served in the United States Marine Corps before joining the DPS on July 14, 2013. He was commissioned as a Trooper on January 13, 2014. and promoted to Special Agent on May 15, 2019. He is survived by his parents, wife, and his three children. He was the 226th DPS officer to die in the line of duty since 1823.

Sergeant Paul Mooney, 52, died on Monday, June 14, 2021. He was battling cancer and had recently been hospitalized with COVID-19. Mooney worked as a Field Recruiting Sergeant for the West Texas Region, responsible for recruiting, testing and mentoring qualified applicants for the DPS Academy. Mooney began his career with DPS in 2008, after retiring from the U.S. Army as a First Sergeant. He served in Mineral Wells, Waxahachie and Fort Worth, before being promoted to Sergeant in 2015. He was then stationed in Hurst for three years, assuming the position of Field Recruiting Sergeant in 2016. Mooney returned to El Paso in 2018 where he stayed until his death. He was the 224th DPS officer to die in the line of duty since 1823.

On March 24, 2012, Javier Arana Jr., was responding to a pursuit call when a Ford Ranger struck his patrol car in east El Paso. His vehicle caught fire, and Arana died on the scene. Arana graduated from the DPS Academy in November 2010 and was stationed in El Paso. He is survived by a wife and children. He was the 87th DPS employee to die in the line of duty.

CC DPS