The man suspected of being the ringleader of a mob of hundreds of immigrants who stormed a wall in Texas in March has finally been captured after seven months on the run, authorities said.
Gabriel Enrique Angarita Carrasquero, 22, a Venezuelan immigrant, was wanted by the state of Texas on suspicion of rioting and assaulting a soldier during a brawl in El Paso.
He was initially arrested after being involved in a violent act that was caught exclusively on The Post’s cameras.
But federal authorities released Carrasquero before state authorities could arrest him after Border Patrol reviewed footage of the riot and was unable to implicate him.
Mr. Carrasquero is said to have helped lead the border riot. During the riot, 211 migrants broke through a chain-link fence and overpowered National Guard troops who tried to stop the group from rushing toward the border wall.
One of the rioters was seen stomping on a soldier’s knee during the riot, officials previously told the Post.
Carrasquero was initially believed to be in Arizona, where he told Border Patrol agents that he would be on his way as soon as he was released.
Instead, he was found in Des Moines, Iowa, in October and arrested by state police during a traffic stop. He is currently in state custody in El Paso, Texas.
The Iowa State Patrol told the Post that troopers took Carrasquero into custody after pulling over his car for a “traffic violation,” but at the time “we learned that he had an active warrant out of Texas.” I discovered it,” he said.
Internal documents previously obtained by the newspaper show that as part of the Texas violence case against Mr. Carrasquero, Border Patrol agents spoke with a “cooperative immigrant” who was part of the group that attacked Mr. Carrasquero’s fence. He was identified as the “instigator.”
The informant told Border Patrol agents that he observed “Mr. Carrasquero use a rope to pull down the gate, allowing migrants to bypass the National Guard and rush into the United States.”
Carrasquero was one of two alleged instigators initially released by border agents.
Fortunately, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers were able to more quickly arrest the other suspect, Juan Jose Colorado Gutierrez, 35, who was wearing an ICE ankle monitor at the time. I was able to do it. It’s unclear exactly why Gutierrez was wearing the surveillance device.
Of the 211 migrants who crossed the border during the March riots, 124 were released by Immigration Customs and Enforcement. The Biden administration’s policy directs officials to prioritize enforcement and detention beds for immigrants deemed public safety or national security. Security and border security threats.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott revealed in September that more than 100 of the rioters were suspected members of the Torren de Aragua gang.
Since then, the Lone Star State has equipped soldiers and troops stationed along the border with non-lethal pepperball guns to prevent future violence.
