An illegal immigrant with a criminal record was arrested Wednesday after allegedly dragging an ICE officer with his car during an arrest attempt in a Chicago suburb, the Department of Homeland Security said.
Jose Garnica-Naranjo, 32, a Mexican citizen, was taken into custody a day after the confrontation, which left the officer hospitalized.
ICE officers first spotted Garnica-Naranjo leaving a home in Chicago Heights on Tuesday morning. They followed his car at a distance before attempting a traffic stop, according to DHS. When officers approached the vehicle and told him to turn off the engine, he allegedly refused.
“When officers attempted to remove him from the vehicle, Garnica accelerated and fled while an ERO Chicago officer was partially inside the vehicle through the driver-side window,” DHS said in a statement.
Garnica-Naranjo then drove over a raised center median planted with trees, throwing the officer from the vehicle, authorities said. As he fled, his car struck the officer, who was taken to a local hospital with contusions, cuts and scrapes to his legs. Tests confirmed no broken bones, and the officer has since been released.
ICE says Garnica-Naranjo’s record includes prior convictions for domestic violence and assault.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the incident reflects a broader pattern of attacks on federal immigration officers.
“This illegal alien used his vehicle to assault one of our ICE officers, hospitalizing the officer,” Mullin said. “Thankfully, the officer has since been released from the hospital. This is just the latest example of the staggering rise in anti-ICE violence, with our officers facing a more than 1,600% increase in assaults against them.”
Mullin directly blamed Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker and other Democratic officials for what he called inflammatory rhetoric toward ICE.
“This is the result of anti-ICE rhetoric from sanctuary politicians like Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker,” Mullin said. “DHS is calling on Governor Pritzker and all other sanctuary politicians to knock off this violent rhetoric and start cooperating with ICE before any more officers are injured in the line of duty.”
