More than three decades after his death, a Bronx native was remembered Friday during a ceremony in Washington D.C.
The national headquarters for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was renamed in honor of Special Agent Ariel Rios.
He is the only Hispanic to have his name on a federal building in the nation’s capital.
Rios was killed on the job in Miami in 1982. He was working on an undercover drug trafficking operation.
Family members and fellow agents gathered to mark the anniversary of his death.
“I’m proud that people believe in him, that they can even put a building under his name" said Nilda Rios, Ariel's sister. "It shows a lot of respect for him.”
“I think every day we walk through the doors here, because this is where we come to work, that we will be reminded of that dedication and that commitment," says Regina Lombardo, ATF Deputy Assistant Director of Field Operations. "And I think having a final home and having a place that we could call home and put this to rest finally, is a long time coming.”
Rios was 28 years old when he was killed.