Prosecutor moves to dismiss charges against men accused of violent encounter with federal agents in Minneapolis
- - Prosecutor moves to dismiss charges against men accused of violent encounter with federal agents in Minneapolis
Tim StellohFebruary 13, 2026 at 11:42 PM
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A federal agent shot a man in the thigh on Jan. 14 in Minneapolis, authorities have said, days after the fatal shooting of Renee Good. The shooting prompted protests and pleas for calm from officials in Minnesota. (John Moore / Getty Images file) (John Moore)
A federal prosecutor is seeking to dismiss charges against two men involved in what authorities described as a violent altercation with immigration agents in Minneapolis last month.
In a filing Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Minnesota, a federal prosecutor cited newly discovered evidence that he says is “materially inconsistent” with preliminary hearing testimony and an affidavit filed on Jan. 16 against Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis and Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna.
The motion seeks to dismiss the charges with prejudice, indicating they cannot be refiled.
The affidavit, written by an FBI agent, accuses the men of aiding and abetting to forcibly assault and impede a federal law enforcement officer.
One of the men, Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, was shot in the thigh during the Jan. 14 encounter, which occurred days after the fatal shooting of Renee Good and prompted protests and pleas for calm from officials in Minnesota.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday, nor did the FBI or the Department of Homeland Security, which provided an initial account of the incident in a news release.
Attorneys for the men did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday.
Some details in DHS' account differ from those in the FBI agent’s affidavit, including who was shot and how many people were involved in the alleged attack on the officer.
According to DHS, federal law enforcement officers were conducting a “targeted traffic stop” on a Venezuelan man who was in the country illegally.
The department said the man fled the stop and crashed into a parked car before he began “to resist and violently assault” an officer. During that struggle, two people emerged from a nearby apartment and began attacking the officer with a snow shovel and broom handle, according to DHS’ account.
The man was shot when he broke loose and hit the agent with a shovel or a broomstick, according to DHS, which did not identify any of the alleged assailants in the initial release. The release described the gunfire as defensive and said the agent feared for his life when he opened fire.
Three people fled into the apartment after the shooting, according to DHS.
In the affidavit, the FBI agent wrote that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents ran a license plate that came back to a person in the U.S. without authorization. The driver of that vehicle fled, but it wasn’t the person the vehicle was registered to, the agent wrote.
Aljorna was later determined to be the driver and the agents pursued his vehicle. After it crashed, one agent chased Aljorna as he fled toward a nearby apartment where Sosa-Celis was standing outside, according to the affidavit.
During a struggle between Aljorna and the agent, Sosa-Celis struck the officer with a broomstick, the affidavit alleges. The agent saw what he believed to be a third man who struck the agent with a snow shovel, the affidavit alleges, and Aljorna hit the agent with the broomstick.
The agent drew his weapon and the men retreated to the apartment, according to the affidavit. The agent fired toward the men, striking Sosa-Celis in the upper thigh, it said.
The affidavit noted that the lighting in the area was not good and said the agent “had difficulty seeing the assailants” during the struggle. The affidavit states the second immigration agent saw the first in an altercation with only two males.
Sosa-Celis told the FBI he had a snow shovel but denied using it, according to the affidavit. Aljorna said he grabbed a broom and threw it toward the officer when he was running into the apartment, the affidavit states.
Aljorna told authorities after his arrest that he bought the vehicle he was driving during the pursuit five months earlier but hadn’t transferred the ownership, according to the affidavit.
The Trump administration on Thursday announced it would be ending its immigration surge in Minneapolis, weeks after the fatal shootings of Good and Alex Pretti by immigration enforcement agents. The immigration crackdown and shootings drew widespread condemnation and calls for federal authorities to leave.
Source: “AOL Breaking”
