() A man accused of throwing rocks at law enforcement vehicles during Los Angeles’s anti-ICE protests last month was arrested Wednesday at the U.S.-Mexico border, according to the U.S. attorney for the Central District of California.
U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli identified the suspect as Elpidio Reyna and released footage allegedly showing him picking up large rocks and hurling them at passing Border Patrol vehicles. The incident occurred on June 7 in Paramount, California, injuring one federal officer during the attack.
Essayli also released a video that shows Reyna being taken into custody in San Diego by a Border Patrol officer who had been inside one of the vehicles targeted during the incident.
Reyna now faces a felony charge of assaulting a federal officer.
Calling Reyna a “dangerous felon,” Essayli said he voluntarily surrendered at the southern border and is expected to make his initial court appearance Wednesday afternoon.
“To anyone who thinks they can attack federal officers and hide behind a mask or helmet, Reyna’s arrest today proves we can find and charge anyone who violates federal law,” Essayli wrote in a social media post, adding, “Don’t touch our officers.”
Last month, violent anti-ICE protests erupted after three days of immigration raids targeting several L.A.-area businesses and gathering places for day laborers. The Trump administration deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles to protect federal agents and assist local authorities, a move that local leaders have criticized as inflaming the situation. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a democrat, has called their deployment a “serious breach of state sovereignty” and a “complete overreaction.”
