Human smuggler fleeing border patrol shoves migrant from car, runs him over, feds say

A man accused of helping to smuggle migrants into the United States is charged with endangering a life after federal prosecutors said he shoved one out of his car and ran over him as he tried to evade border patrol agents.

Isaiah Osorio, a 23-year-old from New Mexico, met a human smuggling coordinator on Facebook and arranged to help transport migrants near the border, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.

Osorio drove to southern Arizona on May 24 and picked up multiple people who had crossed the border without documents, the release says. He drove them for about half an hour before noticing that law enforcement officers were following him.

He then stopped the car and yelled at his passengers to get out. He shoved one who had not fully exited the vehicle out of the car and started driving again, the release says.

The passenger fell, and Osorio ran over him as he tried to flee, prosecutors said.

Osorio’s attorney, Saul Huerta, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News.

U.S. Border Patrol agents rendered aid to the man on scene and called emergency medical services, the release says. The man was taken to the hospital where he was treated for injuries, including abrasions and head trauma.

Osorio fled from a Border Patrol checkpoint before he was caught by agents, the release says.

Osorio faces charges of “transportation of illegal aliens for profit while placing in jeopardy the life of any person” and “high speed flight from an immigration checkpoint,” the release says.

This story was originally published May 31, 2022 at 4:31 PM with the headline "Human smuggler fleeing border patrol shoves migrant from car, runs him over, feds say."