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A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer faces an assault charge for allegedly aiming a firearm at the heads of two drivers in Minneapolis back in February, the Hennepin County Attorney’s office announced on Thursday.
As per the prosecutor’s official account, Gregory Morgan Jr., an ICE officer stationed in Minneapolis, was concluding his workday on Feb. 5 and was en route back to the Whipple Federal Building when someone supposedly impeded his progress while he attempted to overtake them, leading to the agent reportedly displaying a gun toward them.
Morgan, residing in Temple Hills, Maryland, is being charged with two counts of assault utilizing a dangerous weapon, and a countrywide warrant has been issued for his detention. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarity mentioned at a press event on Thursday that Morgan is still at large but expressed hope that he will surrender himself.
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The Department of Homeland Security has not yet addressed ABC News’ request for a statement.
The episode unfolded during a period of heightened tension in Minneapolis, as the city was the epicenter of a vigorous immigration enforcement initiative and occurred following the fatalities of Alex Pretti and Renee Good at the hands of federal law enforcement officers. During that time, questions arose concerning the potential for state or local authorities to prosecute ICE agents.
Moriarity stated on Thursday that Morgan was operating a vehicle “unlawfully” on the shoulder, “seemingly attempting to circumvent traffic.”
The complainant informed the authorities that they were unaware the other driver was an ICE officer until investigators notified them, according to the prosecutor’s statement.
“The Defendant’s vehicle had no indicators to identify it as being operated by law enforcement, and it was not equipped with operational lights or sirens,” as per the filing. “The Defendant persisted in driving on the shoulder, but instead of simply moving past the victims, he drew alongside their vehicle, lowered his window, and aimed a dark-colored handgun straight at Victim 1 and Victim 2. Victim 1 was able to clearly discern the Defendant’s appearance, noting that he was clad in a black t-shirt and that the handgun, identified as either a Glock or Sig Sauer, appeared to have a red-dot sight; the witness also recalled Defendant 2 shouting something unclear.”
The complaint further stated that the police were then contacted to report the incident.
Detectives conducted interviews with Morgan, his supervisor, and his partner the next day.
According to the prosecutor’s declaration:
“[Morgan] alleged that Victim 1 veered sharply in front of him and cut him off. The Defendant claimed that he was concerned for his personal safety and the safety of others, so, in response, he pulled up next to Victim 1’s car, rolled down the window, brandished his weapon, and shouted, ‘Police Stop.’ [Morgan] mentioned he was trying to get Victim 1 to ‘retreat.’ The Defendant admitted that his firearm was a Glock 19 equipped with a laser light, which he had holstered on his right hip during the course of the interview. The Defendant further stated that, following his act of drawing the gun on Victim 1 and Victim 2, he positioned his vehicle in front of theirs and drove to the Whipple Building.”
The investigators also indicated that they had obtained cellphone footage from the complainant and examined surveillance footage from traffic cameras positioned along the road they were traveling on.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com