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A man from Mexico, who entered the country illegally and has been deported six times, is accused of trying to hit federal agents in Colorado. The suspect, Jose Mendez-Chavez, 31, has a history of child abuse and domestic violence convictions. He was driving a vehicle that was used to attack U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during an operation in Colorado Springs. Mendez-Chavez is currently on the run, while his passenger, Francisco Zapata-Pacheco, has been arrested.
“An officer fired three shots at the vehicle to protect the agents on site from their violent actions. The suspects fled and abandoned the vehicle,” an ICE spokesperson stated.
No one was harmed during the incident, according to ICE. The agency criticized the Colorado Rapid Response Network (CRRN), an anti-ICE group that interferes with immigration raids.
“It is unacceptable that the Colorado Rapid Response network would support an individual who has harmed children and attempted to harm our officers,” the ICE spokesperson remarked. “Our ICE law enforcement officers are facing a significant increase in assaults due to the misinformation spread by activist groups.”
The ICE spokesperson further added, “Mendez was not an ‘innocent victim’, he is an abuser who takes advantage of the system and is now wanted for assaulting a federal officer.”
Mendez-Chavez has a history of multiple illegal re-entries into the United States, as per ICE records. Despite being removed from the country six times before, he continues to return. He was most recently convicted in August 2020 for reckless endangerment in Texas and sentenced to a year in prison. In January 2020, he was arrested in Colorado for child abuse. In July 2013, he was convicted of domestic violence in Ohio and served a 180-day jail sentence.
