Authorities in Colorado are desperately searching for a convicted child abuser who rammed his vehicle into Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Jose Mendez-Chavez, 31, a Mexican national, remains on the loose since he tried to assault officers with his vehicle at new home construction sites in Sterling Ranch, south of Denver, on Thursday morning, KOAA reports.
None of the officers were injured in the attack, but it prompted one agent to fire his weapon at least three times in a residential area.
ICE officials quickly apprehended the other suspect in the vehicle, identified as Francisco Zapata-Pacheo, whom they say is now cooperating with law enforcement.
But Mendez-Chavez’s whereabouts remain unknown, as ICE agents revealed that he is a convicted child abuser with previous arrests for domestic violence and entering the country illegally a half dozen times,
Records obtained by Fox News show Mendez-Chaves was most recently convicted in August 2020 of reckless endangerment in Texas and was sentenced to one year behind bars.
He was also arrested in January 2020 for child abuse, and in July 2013, Mendez-Chaves was convicted in Ohio of domestic violence and sentenced to 180 days in prison.
‘Mendez-Chaves was not an “innocent victim,” he is an abuser who plays the system, and is now wanted for assault on a federal officer,’ a spokesperson for the agency said in a statement.
Jose Mendez-Chavez, 31, a Mexican national, remains on the loose since he tried to assault officers with his vehicle in Sterling Ranch, Colorado, on Thursday morning
ICE officials were conducting a raid on construction sites at around 8.30am
Mendez-Chavez’s whereabouts still remain unknown, as ICE agents revealed that he is a convicted child abuser with previous arrests for domestic violence and entering the country illegally
The spokesperson also blasted the Colorado Rapid Response Network, an immigrant-rights organization he called ‘despicable’ for reportedly showing up in defense of Mendez-Chaves ‘who has abused children and attempted to injure our officers.’
ICE agents began their operation at around 8.30am on Thursday, arriving at a cul-de-sac of new home builds near near Poco and Vollmer Roads, KOAA reports.
Upon their arrival, construction workers from different job sites started to run, and Mendez-Chaves and Zapata-Pacheo rammed their vehicle into the officers, prompting one to open fire at around 8.31am.
That agent then claimed that one of the two men inside the vehicle fled on foot before the car sped away.
Meanwhile, home security footage from the newly-built neighborhood showed a man jumping the fence of a home and hiding under a barbecue grill cover.
Officers could be seen in pursuit nearby, but apparently did not notice the suspect jumping the fence as they appeared to chase others who were running.
The homeowner has since told KOAA that the unidentified man hid under their grill for at least two hours – before he entered their home while his family was inside.
Yet the family, in another room, was unaware of the man’s presence as he walked through their house while their grandchild played video games nearby.
The two acknowledged each other, but otherwise, the man largely ignored the child as he sought an exit – eventually slipping through the front door and entering a vehicle that seemed to be waiting for him, and drove away.
Home security footage taken near the raids showed one man jumping a fence and hiding under a resident’s grill cover
It now remains unclear whether the man is one of the two suspects ICE agents had sought in connection with the ramming incident
It now remains unclear whether the man is one of the two suspects ICE agents had sought in connection with the ramming incident.
In the meantime, Zapata-Pacheco has been taken to the Aurora ICE Detention Facility.
It is unclear whether he was facing any criminal charges prior to his arrest, but officials say he will be held in ICE custody pending immigration and criminal proceedings.
