A Texas National Guardsman was allegedly busted for smuggling an illegal alien in his government-issued SUV, according to multiple reports.
According to The New York Times, Specialist Savion Amari Donovan Johnson, 26, led police on a high-speed chase that ended in his arrest in an area near the U.S.-Mexico border that is notorious for human smuggling.
Johnson was arrested by Texas Department of Public Safety officers assigned as part of Operation Lone Star along with sheriff’s deputies from Kinney County. He was charged with human smuggling, felony evading arrest and unlawful weapons possession.
#BREAKING A Texas National Guard soldier deployed from McAllen to Eagle pass under Operation Lonestar was busted for attempting to smuggle an illegal immigrant in a government vehicle on Sunday.
— Ali Bradley (@AliBradleyTV) April 3, 2024
Kinney County Sheriff Brad Coe says the soldier turned around when he approached a… pic.twitter.com/HrIIqXmNTq
Sheriff Brad Coe of Kinney County confirmed to the Times that Donovan was part of the National Guard (via NYT):
Sheriff Coe said that the migrant was being transported in an official vehicle with official equipment associated with the border security mission. “My understanding is that he did have his Operation Lone Star gear in the vehicle,” Mr. Coe said in an interview.
“It’s not a good thing. But he’s not the first one we’ve picked up that’s associated with the National Guard,” Mr. Coe added. “We’ve picked up attorneys. Preachers. Old ones, young ones, juveniles. The money is out there.”
[...]
According to a police affidavit, a state trooper tried to pull Mr. Johnson over in a silver GMC sport utility vehicle for going over the speed limit on a local farm road. At that point, around 3:40 p.m. on Sunday, the GMC sped away and the trooper drove after it. After the vehicles turned onto a state highway, the chase reached speeds above 100 miles an hour, according to the affidavit.
At one point, the S.U.V. slowed and stopped so that a man could run away on foot, and then continued. It finally stopped after hitting spikes that had been put across the road by the police, according to the affidavit. The affidavit noted that the police had made contact with Mr. Johnson’s sergeant to alert him of the arrest.
“If the allegations are true, the accused is a traitor and criminal,” Andrew Mahaleris, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s press secretary said in a statement to the Times.
“We have zero tolerance for Texans who violate laws that directly contradict the mission we are seeking to achieve. The accused’s illegal smuggling may subject him to a mandatory minimum prison sentence of at least 10 years. He deserves more,” he added.
Previously, Townhall covered how a former Border Patrol agent, his wife, and another man were charged with unlawfully hiring illegal immigrants to work as drivers at their trucking company and obtaining fraudulent immigration documents.