Morris Pasqual, Acting U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois
Morris Pasqual, Acting U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois
Two Chicago residents have been charged in federal court for allegedly using their vehicles to assault and impede federal agents. According to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court, Marimar Martinez, 30, and Anthony Ian Santos Ruiz, 21, are accused of striking a vehicle driven by an agent from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Saturday morning near West 39th Street and South Kedzie Avenue in Chicago’s Southwest Side. Two other CBP agents were also present in the government vehicle.
The complaint states that after the collision, the defendants’ vehicles boxed in the agents’ car, preventing it from moving. The agent exited his vehicle and fired approximately five shots from his service weapon at Martinez.
Martinez left the scene but was later found by paramedics at a repair shop about a mile away. She was transported to a hospital for treatment of gunshot wounds. Ruiz also fled but was located with his vehicle at a nearby gas station by law enforcement officers.
Both Martinez and Ruiz remain in custody as they await initial appearances in federal court.
The charges against them include forcibly assaulting, impeding, and interfering with a federal law enforcement officer.
Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the FBI’s Chicago Field Office announced the charges.
"The public is reminded that a complaint contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt," according to officials.
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