2 Phoenix-area men followed agents after ICE arrest, face charges, FBI says
The woman's brother was also facing charges after he chased an agent in another vehicle, leading the agent to think they would be run off the road, according to a complaint written by an FBI agent and authorized by a federal prosecutor.
The two men, Abran Villa Jr. and Jose Sarinana, were each facing a charge of assault on a federal officer after the June 1 incident, the complaint said.
FBI personnel were assisting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents when they stopped a Nissan Titan pickup and arrested the passenger because of her immigration status, the complaint said. The woman had been under surveillance and "was allowed to hug and say goodbye to" Villa, her boyfriend, who was driving, the complaint said.
As one FBI special agent left the scene, he noticed a GMC Sierra truck was following him. The truck stayed close and pulled beside the agent at one point, when the agent "feared his vehicle was going to be run off the road," the complaint said.
When the agent hit the brakes and made an immediate right turn, the GMC cut across traffic to follow, the document said.
Another agent who responded to help followed the GMC into a Burger King parking lot near Arizona Avenue and Ray Road. As that agent was leaving the parking lot, the Nissan driven by Villa pulled up to face the agent's vehicle head-on and block the exit, revving its engine, the complaint said.
The Nissan peeled out and took off, allowing the agent to continue pursuing the GMC, according to the FBI account. Ultimately, the GMC stopped and, with firearms drawn, agents had the driver and passenger exit. The driver of the GMC, identified by the FBI as Sarinana, was the brother of the woman detained by immigration agents.
"Within minutes" of stopping the GMC, the Nissan returned and pulled up to a group of FBI agents at the scene, the complaint said.
The truck faced the agents "head on and started to rev the engine again," the complaint said. The FBI agents feared the vehicle would ram them, and after giving commands, four people got out of the pickup, according to the FBI account. Two were 14-year-old boys, the complaint said.
Villa said in an interview that he notified everyone at his home that immigration officials had detained the woman, and he and others went to look for her to find out where she was taken, the complaint said.
"He claimed revving the engine was just his foot slipping — both times," the complaint said.
It also said Sarinana told agents in an interview he believed his sister had been kidnapped, though the passenger in the GMC recorded a video that included references to "ICE" or "feds."
Attorneys for Sarinana and Villa could not be reached or did not respond to requests for comment late on June 5. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Arizona, which prosecutes federal crimes, declined to comment on the case.
A federal magistrate on June 4 ordered that Villa and Sarinana be held in custody and set a hearing for June 10, according to court records.
Reach reporter Stacey Barchenger at stacey.barchenger@arizonarepublic.com or 480-416-5669.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: FBI: Phoenix-area men followed agents after ICE arrest, face charges
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