Federal authorities arrested the man suspected of throwing rocks at law enforcement vehicles during anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement riots in Los Angeles early last month.
The wanted man, identified as 39-year-old Elpidio Reyna, surrendered himself to the FBI at the southern border on Wednesday morning. He was in the Mexican government’s custody after he fled the United States when FBI agents started searching for him.
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FBI Director Kash Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino both announced Reyna’s arrest on social media. The FBI Los Angeles field office, the FBI San Diego field office, and Customs and Border Protection led the weekslong investigation.
The FBI “will never tolerate violence against those who serve and protect this country,” Patel said.
“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. Don’t touch our officers,” warned U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli, whose office is overseeing the prosecution.
Reyna is accused of throwing concrete blocks at law enforcement on June 7 in Paramount, California, injuring a federal officer and damaging government vehicles. He was charged with a felony the following day. His actions were recorded and went viral on social media at the time.
The alleged assault took place during violent clashes between anti-ICE rioters and law enforcement in Los Angeles. The civil unrest prompted the Trump administration to deploy thousands of National Guard soldiers and Marines to the city to assist federal agents and local police.
After fleeing California, Reyna was apprehended in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. His headshot and description were widely publicized in the U.S. and Mexico before his arrest.
One of the officers whom Reyna attacked helped take him into custody earlier Wednesday.
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“He was taken into custody by a U.S. Border Patrol officer who was inside one of the vehicles damaged in the attack — a brave law enforcement officer who could have been killed in last month’s dangerous and reckless attack,” Essayli noted.
The defendant made his initial appearance in a Los Angeles court Wednesday afternoon. If convicted, he could face a statutory maximum penalty of eight years in federal prison for the crime.