ICE searching for suspect accused of ramming agents in Lewisville
FULL CONFERENCE: ICE searching for suspect accused of ramming agents
Federal officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Justice held a news conference on Thursday morning to release information on 28-year-old Jerson Lopez-Sanchez.
DALLAS - Federal officials are searching for a suspect who reportedly injured three ICE agents during a traffic stop and chase in Lewisville.
What we know:
Federal officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Justice held a news conference on Thursday morning to release information on 28-year-old Jerson Lopez-Sanchez.
The agency said Lopez-Sanchez is a Honduran native who is wanted for three counts of assaulting federal immigration agents.
Dig deeper:
The incident happened on the morning of Dec. 1 as the ICE agents were trying to arrest Lopez-Sanchez for an active warrant.
They reportedly located him in a neighborhood and followed his vehicle into Lewisville. They stopped him on Interstate 35E near FM 3040.
After pulling over, federal officials said Lopez-Sanches suddenly put his vehicle into reverse and rammed one of the agents’ vehicles. That agent one leg out of his vehicle at the time and was injured.
Other agents began chasing Lopez-Sanchez with their lights and sirens on. Lopez-Sanchez allegedly rammed a second ICE vehicle during the chase, injuring two more agents.
He eventually stopped on East Valley Ridge Boulevard in Lewisville. That’s when federal officials said he and four other people fled on foot.
The agents captured three people who tried to run, but Lopez-Sanchez was not one of them. He’s still wanted by the FBI.
What they're saying:
"Vehicles in the hands of individuals who intend to obstruct or evade law enforcement are deadly weapons. When someone runs down an ICE officer or any federal law enforcement officer or local law enforcement officer, those deadly weapons act as battering rams. It is a violent attack, and it will not be tolerated," said Jake Combs, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas.
Combs said in this case, the ramming was so violent that it deployed all the airbags in the vehicle and 911 was called to assist the passenger in that vehicle.
Jeremy Right, the assistant special agent in charge for FBI Dallas, said this is just the latest example of the increasing dangers that law enforcement face daily.
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When asked about the timing of the news conference in relation to what’s been happening in Minnesota, Combs said the search for Lopez-Sanchez has been ongoing for the past two months.
"And he’s not been located yet. And we determined that now was the time to go public with this information in an effort to try and further this investigation," he said.
What we don't know:
The federal officials would not go into detail about the severity of the agents’ injuries.
They also would not answer questions about the other people who were in Lopez-Sanchez’s vehicle.
What you can do:
Lopez-Sanchez is described as a Hispanic male who is about 5 feet 8 inches tall and about 165 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes.
He’s believed to be still in the area and may be working as a roofer.
Anyone with information about him is asked to call the FBI at 1-800-225-5324 or email tip@tips.fbi.gov.
There is a $15,000 reward available for information that leads to his arrest.
The Source: The information in this story comes from a news conference held on Thursday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Justice officials, as well as a post on social media from the Lewisville Police Department in December.