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The Cuban Robyn Argote-Brooks, 25 years old, has a trial scheduled for May 6 in a federal court in San Antonio, Texas, where he faces charges of destruction of government property after ramming vehicles of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during a migration operation, according to the local media News 4.
The incident occurred on January 13 in the parking lot of a Walmart located near Blanco Road and Wurzbach Parkway, when ICE agents were conducting an immigration checkpoint.
According to federal authorities, the agents repeatedly ordered Argote-Brooks to exit his vehicle, but the young man refused. At that time, he was working as a grocery delivery driver for a third-party app.
Authorities state that he reversed into a federal vehicle and then drove forward into another while attempting to avoid being arrested, causing estimated damages of $4,847 and injuring an agent.
The video of the incident shows that the government vehicles were unmarked and that the officers were pointing their guns at Argote-Brooks, repeatedly telling him to exit the car. Subsequently, an officer opened the driver's side door and immobilized him on the ground.
According to a statement from the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), one of the agents was injured.
During the hearing held this Wednesday, the attorneys for Argote-Brooks withdrew a motion to suppress evidence in order to expedite the process, and they believe the trial will be brief. If found guilty, he could face up to ten years in federal prison.
Argote-Brooks entered the United States on October 11, 2024, at the port of entry in Laredo, Texas, through the CBP One program of the Biden administration.
He received a Notice to Appear and was placed on probation while awaiting his immigration proceedings, but the Department of Homeland Security canceled that benefit on April 18, 2025.
The defense, led by lawyer Marina Thais Douenat, argues that neither Argote-Brooks nor his father were notified of that cancellation.
The young man's father testified at a previous hearing that his son had applied for residency and political asylum, and that he had a renewed work permit at the end of 2025.
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