DOJ drops charges against men accused of assaulting ICE officers in Minneapolis, citing "inconsistent" evidence
CBSN
The Justice Department moved to drop federal charges against two men charged with assaulting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Minneapolis last month, including one Venezuelan defendant who was shot in the leg by an officer, citing "newly discovered evidence" that was "materially inconsistent" with the allegations against them.
The Justice Department moved to drop federal charges against two men charged with assaulting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Minneapolis last month, including one Venezuelan defendant who was shot in the leg by an officer, citing "newly discovered evidence" that was "materially inconsistent" with the allegations against them.
The filing, entered Thursday by U.S. Attorney in Minnesota Daniel Rosen, moves to dismiss the charges against the men with prejudice, meaning the charges cannot be reintroduced.
In January, the two men, Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, were charged in a federal criminal complaint with forcibly assaulting, resisting or impeding federal officers in performance of their official duties. The charges came after Sosa-Celis was shot by an ICE officer, which drew nationwide attention amid the federal immigration surge in Minnesota.
It is unclear specifically what new information led to the charges getting dismissed. But the government's account of the alleged assault was not consistent.
A day after the shooting, the Department of Homeland Security said Sosa-Celis had fled the scene of a "targeted traffic stop" in Minneapolis in his vehicle, crashed into a parked car and kept fleeing on foot. When an ICE agent caught up to him, two men allegedly attacked the agent with a broom handle and snow shovel, and Sosa-Celis allegedly broke free and also started striking the officer. DHS said an officer then fired a "defensive shot to defend his life." Sosa-Celis and two other men ran into an apartment but were later taken into custody, DHS said.

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The Justice Department moved to drop federal charges against two men charged with assaulting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Minneapolis last month, including one Venezuelan defendant who was shot in the leg by an officer, citing "newly discovered evidence" that was "materially inconsistent" with the allegations against them.

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