The St. Paul arrest involved 31-year-old Alfredo Mancillas Jr., a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol employee found passed out and reportedly "covered in vomit" in his vehicle. He failed a field sobriety test, refused a breathalyzer and was booked on third- and fourth-degree impaired driving charges. DHS declined to specify his role while defending the integrity of most CBP employees. The arrest comes amid a large federal deployment to the Twin Cities and recent controversial shootings that have drawn public scrutiny.
Border Patrol Employee Arrested in St. Paul After Being Found Passed Out and 'Covered in Vomit' — Faces Impaired Driving Charges
Border patrol agents in Chicago
A U.S. Customs and Border Patrol employee was arrested in St. Paul after officers found him passed out behind the wheel and reportedly "covered in vomit," authorities said.
At 3:25 a.m. on Tuesday, a Minnesota state trooper discovered 31-year-old Alfredo Mancillas Jr., of Corpus Christi, Texas, slumped over the steering wheel in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood, according to charges filed by the St. Paul City Attorney's Office. The incident was first reported by Sahan Journal, a nonprofit news outlet in Minnesota.
Police say Mancillas failed a field sobriety test and refused a breathalyzer. He was arrested, booked into the Ramsey County jail and charged with third- and fourth-degree driving while impaired.
"CBP stresses honor and integrity in every aspect of our mission, and the overwhelming majority of CBP employees and officers perform their duties with honor and distinction, working tirelessly every day to keep our country safe," a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told the Journal via email.
DHS declined to provide details about Mancillas's specific role within Border Patrol. The agency's statement emphasized standards of conduct but did not address the allegations or the open charges.
Context
The arrest comes amid a significant surge of federal immigration personnel in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area. Officials say roughly 3,000 Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been deployed to the region in recent weeks.
Those deployments follow several high-profile and controversial encounters between federal agents and civilians, including a recent fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, 37, by Border Patrol agents while he was filming officers in public. Video from that incident circulated widely and raised questions about the agents' actions. Two weeks earlier, an ICE agent shot and killed Renee Good, 37, during an encounter in which she was attempting to drive away, according to news reports.
The Pretti shooting in particular sparked public outcry and led to leadership changes within Border Patrol, including the removal of a senior commander. Media reports have also raised questions about decisions by senior officials; some claims about directives from the White House have been reported but not independently verified.
As the criminal case proceeds, Mancillas remains in custody on the impaired-driving charges filed by the St. Paul City Attorney's Office.
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