FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino has announced a major arrest in a case involving rock attacks against federal immigration authorities that left one agent wounde.
Bongino and other federal officials said a Compton man accused of throwing concrete blocks at federal officers in Paramount in June was taken into custody Wednesday morning at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Elpidio Reyna, 39, of Compton, was arrested at the San Ysidro Port of Entry by FBI agents, with assistance from U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Fox11 reported.
Reyna was wanted in connection with an alleged assault on a federal officer in Paramount on June 7. According to the FBI, Border Patrol had established a staging area when protesters confronted them. The situation escalated as agitators began hurling concrete blocks and glass bottles at authorities, prompting agents to respond with tear gas, the outlet noted.
Video obtained by Fox shows Border Patrol agents withdrawing from the chaotic scene Saturday as their vehicle was pelted with rocks.
“You may remember Elpidio Reyna, a subject who allegedly threw rocks at federal officers during immigration operations in California June 7,” Bongino wrote on his official FBI X account. “We got him. He was arrested today at the U.S.-Mexico border.”
He added: “More to come. Those who attack America’s police officers can run but they can’t hide.”
The FBI used footage from social media and a FOX 11 news report to identify the suspect as Reyna. One federal officer was reportedly injured during the incident, and multiple government vehicles sustained damage.
“Elpidio Reyna surrendered today at the U.S.-Mexico border to face a felony charge of assault on a federal officer for throwing rocks at passing law enforcement vehicles in Paramount on June 7,” U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli noted on the X platform.
“He was taken into custody by a U.S. Border Patrol officer who was inside one of the vehicles damaged in the attack — a brave law enforcement officer who could have been killed in last month’s dangerous and reckless attack,” he added.
“To anyone who thinks they can attack federal officers and hide behind a mask or helmet, Reyna’s arrest today proves we can find and charge anyone who violates federal law. Don’t touch our officers,” he noted.
