Viktor Nacov

Carlitos Ricardo Parias, a 44-year-old illegal alien from Mexico living in South Los Angeles, is now charged in a criminal complaint with assault on a federal officer. He is expected to make his initial appearance tomorrow at the Roybal Federal Building in downtown L.A. and would face up to eight years in federal prison if convicted.   This morning, Parias rammed his car into agents’ vehicles after they boxed him in and ordered him to submit to arrest. Parias, who had previously avoided capture by immigration authorities, refused to comply with agents’ orders and escalated what could have been a simple arrest into a life-threatening situation.   Parias rammed a Toyota Camry into the law enforcement vehicles in front of and behind him, spun the Camry’s tires, spewing smoke and debris into the air, causing the car to fishtail and causing agents to worry for their safety. An agent breaking the Camry’s driver’s side window was not enough to subdue Parias.   Ultimately, an agent opened fire, wounding Parias and a deputy U.S. marshal, who was hit with a ricochet bullet. Fortunately, both the deputy marshal and Parias are expected to recover. Parias was arrested. He is presumed innocent until proven guilty.   Vehicles are deadly weapons. Anyone who uses them against federal agents risks arrest, imprisonment, and life-threatening injuries. We will continue to use every tool in our legal arsenal to protect our agents and enforce immigration laws passed by Congress.