The Justice Department charged 33-year-old Arnoldo Jose Marquez-Pulido after prosecutors say he assaulted a Homeland Security agent in Utica, Michigan, and briefly seized the agent’s Glock 19 during a struggle. Agents monitoring a business suspected of employing undocumented delivery drivers attempted a traffic stop; Marquez-Pulido fled, returned on foot and resisted arrest. Two agents were treated for non-life-threatening injuries and released. Prosecutors say he entered the U.S. at San Ysidro in 2024 without valid documents and will seek to detain him pending federal proceedings.
Venezuelan Man Charged After Struggle With Federal Agent; Glock 19 Briefly Seized in Utica
Residents and federal and Border Patrol agents in California June 19, 2025.(Getty Images)
The Justice Department this week filed a criminal complaint against Arnoldo Jose Marquez-Pulido, a 33-year-old Venezuelan national, alleging he assaulted a Department of Homeland Security agent and briefly grabbed the agent’s service weapon during a struggle outside a business in Utica, Michigan.
Incident Details
Agents from the Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) were conducting surveillance near the business after receiving tips that people living in the U.S. unlawfully were working there as delivery drivers. While monitoring the site, officers observed a vehicle registered to Marquez-Pulido leaving the parking lot and determined he was in the United States without authorization, according to a Department of Justice press release.
Authorities say Marquez-Pulido briefly stopped for a routine traffic stop but then fled at high speed. He later returned to the business and ran on foot. An HSTF agent tackled him after the suspect ignored commands to stop and attempted to re-enter the building. During the ensuing struggle, prosecutors allege Marquez-Pulido struck the agent in the face with his elbow and reached for the agent’s Glock 19 service pistol, removing it from the holster and briefly wielding it before officers regained control.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., March 3, 2026.
Additional officers responded, recovered the firearm from the ground and subdued Marquez-Pulido, who continued to resist before being restrained and taken into custody. The primary agent sustained a contusion to his elbow, abrasions to his knees and hands, and a contusion to his cheek; a second agent suffered a knee contusion. Both were treated at a hospital and released.
Charges, Alleged Entry, and Court Proceedings
Federal prosecutors say Marquez-Pulido is believed to have entered the United States at the San Ysidro, California, port of entry in 2024 without a visa or valid travel documents. The criminal complaint lists multiple counts, including assaulting, resisting or impeding federal officers and unlawful possession or attempted use of a firearm during an escape and confrontation. He was scheduled for an initial appearance in federal court in Detroit, and prosecutors indicated they will seek to detain him pending further proceedings.
U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon (Eastern District of Michigan): "Some say that enforcing our nation’s immigration laws is unfair because illegal aliens are all harmless. Today’s allegations break that narrative. High-speed flight from arrest, fighting federal agents and grabbing an agent’s gun are not ‘harmless.’"
Broader Context
Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have reported increases in assaults on officers in recent months and have emphasized efforts to pursue suspects accused of violence against law enforcement. The incident has also been cited amid partisan debate in the U.S. Senate over full funding for DHS, where disagreements about immigration enforcement and ICE funding remain a central sticking point.
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