Local police arrested a man for suspicion of assaulting a federal immigration agent, who was detaining another man early Monday in Longview.
Police say the arrest took place at about 6:35 a.m. in the parking lot of a strip mall located in the 400 block of Oregon Way, which is home to The Store & Deli, and across from the Oregon Way Tavern and Holt's Market.
Longview Police Capt. Tim Watson told The Daily News that officers arrested Ramon Tovar-Jimenez, 35, of Longview on suspicion of third-degree assault and obstruction when he allegedly assaulted a U.S. Immigration and Customers Enforcement agent while officers were detaining another person.
Representatives from ICE did not immediately answer requests to verify the arrest, and the search function on ICE's online detainee locator system only includes people in custody within the last 48 hours.
However, Longview police confirmed the arrest was made by ICE, and a relative of the detainee talked to The Daily News. The Daily News is not naming the relative for that person's protection.
That person said Tovar-Jimenez has been in the United States since 2008, is a legal resident and owns a local business.
The relative also said the man detained by ICE is 20 years old. He had been living in the United States for about five years, and is originally from the Mexican state of Querétaro, located northwest of the nation's capital, and another relative said he is not a legal resident.
Images shared by witnesses show the vehicle the 20-year-old was placed in did not have a license plate.
The family member said the detainee came to the United States to build a better life and has aspirations of building a home.
The man currently earns a living by collecting cedar to make Christmas wreaths, the relative continued.
The relative said the young man had never been in trouble with the law. A U.S. public records search by The Daily News also showed no criminal history for him.
In late October, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security reported the office was on pace to remove nearly 600,000 "illegal aliens," and that 70% of ICE arrests include criminals charged or convicted of a U.S. crime.
However, Libertarian think tank Cato Institute reported last week that 73% of people booked in ICE custody since October had no criminal conviction, and nearly half had no criminal conviction or pending criminal charges.
In February, the Department of Homeland Security announced that people in the country illegally could also face “significant financial penalty” if they chose to stay.
ICE previously confirmed an arrest on Aug. 6 in the 1500 block of Third Avenue in Longview, near the Hall of Justice.
