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Hector Villegas-Alvarez, 27, was identified by ICE deportation officers on Feb. 23, as being in the United States without legal immigration status, according to U.S. Attorney Alina Habba.
When officers attempted to arrest him, Villegas-Alvarez physically resisted and “forcefully elbowed one of the ICE deportation officers in the face,” according to court documents.
The officer, a woman, suffered a broken nose and a concussion, and continues to experience “severe post-concussion symptoms, including fainting and difficulty breathing,” prosecutors said.
Villegas-Alvarez has been indicted on one count of assaulting a federal officer, a charge that carries up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He appeared last week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jessica S. Allen in Newark federal court and was ordered detained.
“These charges reaffirm our commitment to protect the law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line for the people of New Jersey every day,” said U.S. Attorney Habba. “Those who choose to attack and assault law enforcement will continue to be met with swift and severe punishment.”
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney George L. Brandley of the Health Care Fraud Unit in Newark, and is part of President Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration, organized crime, and violent offenses tied to transnational criminal organizations.
Habba credited the investigation to the deportation officers of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Newark, under Field Office Director John Tsoukaris.
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