Illegal alien indicted for dragging officers with his vehicle

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A federal grand jury indicted a Venezuelan national today on charges alleging he assaulted federal officers while resisting arrest. 

Hector Velandia-Anaya, 18, allegedly attempted to flee from immigration officials and dragged two officers with his vehicle while he began to drive away.

“We will not tolerate any action that endangers the agents who are working to enforce our immigration laws,” said U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II. “As today’s indictment shows, those who threaten the safety of our federal law enforcement partners will be prosecuted.”

According to court documents, on Nov. 2, immigration officers pulled over Velandia-Anaya near Shrock Road in Columbus. The defendant turned off his car’s ignition, but when asked to step out of the vehicle, he allegedly closed the driver’s door and restarted the vehicle to flee.

One officer re-opened the driver’s side door to try to keep Velandia-Anaya from driving away. The other officer partially climbed into the passenger seat to try to stop him from putting the vehicle into drive. Velandia-Anaya allegedly accelerated the vehicle and drove forward with the officers partially inside.

An affidavit details that officers wrestled with Velandia-Anaya’s hand to regain control of the gear shifter, stop the vehicle and ultimately arrest the defendant.

He was charged by federal criminal complaint on Nov. 6. In today’s indictment, he is charged with two counts of assaulting, resisting or impeding a federal officer, a federal crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Dominick S. Gerace II, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Matthew Stentz, Acting Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Detroit; and Kevin Raycraft, Acting Field Office Director, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Detroit Field Office; announced the charges. Assistant United States Attorney Emily Czerniejewski is representing the United States in this case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

An indictment merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

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