Illegal immigrant’s wild escape attempt in South Carolina: Rams police cars, injures officer, gets caught in dramatic crash

South Carolina – After a planned removal operation turned violent, leaving several cars damaged and an officer hurt, federal officials have charged a South Carolina man who was living in the United States illegally.

The incident unfolded on December 6, when teams from Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, along with supporting officers from Customs and Border Protection, were executing a lawful enforcement action.

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According to the Department of Justice, the operation led officers to a car that belonged to 24-year-old Alexander Garcia Vargas. According to records, Garcia Vargas had been ordered removed from the country and was residing in the United States without legal status. When police stopped the car, they found Garcia Vargas inside. He wouldn’t roll down his window, but he did show proof of who he was.

Things became worse when police tried to get him out of the car. Garcia Vargas is said to have sped up instead of following orders, hitting two police vehicles. One cop was hurt while trying to stop the suspect, who kept driving away from the scene. As Garcia Vargas ran away, officers chased him.

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Garcia Vargas lost control of his car and drove into a third car with two CBP agents inside shortly after leaving the first place. With the car disabled, authorities were able to reach Garcia Vargas, extract him from the wreckage, and place him under arrest. There were a lot of damaged cars, but no more significant injuries were recorded.

The North Charleston man is now facing charges of assaulting, resisting, or impeding a federal officer. After being arrested, he went to court for the first time on December 8 in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Gordon Baker.

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The investigation into the event was undertaken by Homeland Security Investigations, and Cole Shannon, an Assistant U.S. Attorney, is in charge of the case.

The case shows how dangerous it is for federal agents to carry out removal operations and how serious the legal penalties are for people who use violence against law police.