DOJ tosses charges against 2 Venezuelan men in Minneapolis ICE assault case over new evidence

MINNEAPOLIS, MN: Federal prosecutors have moved to dismiss felony assault charges against Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna and Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, two Venezuelan men accused of attacking an immigration officer last month.

In a filing submitted on Thursday, February 12, the Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota stated that newly discovered evidence was "materially inconsistent with the allegations" originally brought against the pair.

The government’s motion requested a "dismissal with prejudice," which ensured that the charges could not be resubmitted.

The case had drawn national attention after Sosa-Celis was shot in the leg by the officer during the January 14 incident, which occurred amid a broader surge of federal immigration enforcement in the region.

Conflicting accounts of the shooting

The initial criminal complaint alleged that ICE officers attempted a traffic stop on Aljorna, who crashed his vehicle and fled toward an apartment complex.

The government claimed that as an officer attempted an arrest, Sosa-Celis and another man emerged from a nearby unit and ambushed the agent with a snow shovel and broom handle.

However, defense attorneys and eyewitnesses provided a starkly different account.

Attorneys for the men presented photos to the court showing a single bullet hole through the front door of the home, suggesting that the officer had fired through a closed door.

While the officer claimed that he had fired a "defensive shot" while being beaten, defense counsel argued that Sosa-Celis was retreating into the home when he was struck in the thigh.

Video evidence fails to corroborate 

Cracks in the prosecution's case deepened during a January 21 hearing when video evidence failed to support the officer's testimony.

While the agent claimed that he had been assaulted with a broom and snow shovel, available footage did not corroborate that he was being struck at the time he fired his weapon.

Testimony from neighbors and the defendants' romantic partners further undercut the agent's narrative, denying that a third assailant was even involved.

Aljorna's attorney noted that while his client had held a broomstick, he had thrown it while running away, rather than using it to strike the officer during a struggle.

The attorneys emphasized that the entire case rested on the uncorroborated word of the agent who fired the shot.

Families seek accountability for agents

Attorneys for Sosa-Celis stated that the family was "overjoyed" that justice was being served, but they also wanted the identity of the ICE officer released and criminal charges filed against him.

The incident reached a terrifying conclusion when federal officers used tear gas to force the family out of their home while two children under the age of two were inside.

The move to drop charges came as several other high-profile cases against protesters and individuals accused of impeding federal officers in Minnesota have similarly crumbled.