Category: FBI

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (c)

On August 11, 2021, the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested 37-year-old Ivan Mendoza from El Paso, Texas. Mendoza has been charged by a federal criminal complaint filed today with one count of 18 U.S.C. § 111—Assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers or employees.

At approximately 12:00 a.m., a United States Border Patrol Agent was allegedly assaulted by Mendoza as he tried to flee in his vehicle from the USBP checkpoint located off U.S. Highway 62/180 in El Paso County, Texas. When the USBP Agent tried to open the door to the vehicle Mendoza was driving, Mendoza sped away, knocking the Agent down to the ground.

At approximately 20:00 p.m., Mendoza was taken into federal custody.

In connection with the investigation, FBI El Paso Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Downey said, “The men and women of the U.S. Border Patrol work tirelessly to keep our borders safe. Over the past week we have received three assault on federal officer allegations targeting U.S. Border Patrol agents. Assaults on Border Patrol agents or any other federal agents/officers or task force officers will not be tolerated and will be addressed swiftly by our office so they can continue to carry out their sworn duty to protect our communities.”

“Our agents continue to display valor and courage in the most trying circumstances. This is just another example of the inherent dangers our agents face every day.” stated U.S. Border Patrol El Paso Sector Chief Gloria I. Chavez. “Thankfully, this perpetrator was located and will be brought to justice through the combined efforts of our agents and our invaluable law enforcement partnership with the FBI.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation El Paso Division investigated this case with assistance from United States Border Patrol El Paso Sector Intelligence and Ysleta Anti-Smuggling Units, and the United States Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan Serwatka is prosecuting the case on behalf of the Government.

It is important to note that a criminal complaint is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)

GSUSA provides young women the opportunity to participate in STEM programming and activities with their troops each year. These programs engage GSUSA members in STEM topics such as cybersecurity and online safety, while encouraging civic awareness.

FBI community outreach specialists within FBI field offices will collaborate with local Girl Scout councils and other similar organizations to offer girls STEM-related speakers, resources, and events. FBI employees will deliver presentations to Girl Scouts and facilitate activities within Girl Scouts’ current STEM and cybersecurity programming to earn various Girl Scout badges. Girl Scouts will also learn about the mission and work of the FBI and its STEM-focused career offerings.

“The FBI is honored to partner with Girl Scouts of the USA to ensure more women have a seat at the table in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math,” said Executive Assistant Director Larissa Knapp, FBI Human Resources Branch. “The FBI is committed to providing girls educational opportunities on STEM topics and empowering them to be leaders in their communities and future workplace. Hopefully, these opportunities will inspire girls to discover new career interests, and perhaps some of these young women will even decide to take their talents to the FBI.”

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)

NEW ORLEANS, LA—The FBI New Orleans Field Office is engaged in a robust state-wide effort to build public awareness of hate crimes and encourage reporting to law enforcement.

Hate crimes are the highest priority of the FBI’s Civil Rights Program because of the devastating impact they have on families and communities. Hate crimes are not only an attack on the victim—they are meant to threaten and intimidate an entire community.

“Hate crimes are the top priority within the FBI’s Civil Rights Program due to the devastating impact these types of crimes have on communities. One act can terrorize entire communities and groups of people,” said FBI Associate Deputy Director Jeffrey Sallet. “There’s simply no place in this country for hate and intolerance. We in the FBI stand ready to use all the tools at our disposal to reduce the threat of hate crimes and fulfill our mission to protect every American.”

The FBI is the lead investigative agency for criminal violations of federal civil rights statutes. The FBI works closely with its local, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement partners in many of these cases, even when federal charges are not pursued. The FBI also works to detect and prevent incidents through law enforcement training, public outreach, and partnerships with community groups.

The FBI defines a hate crime as a “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender’s bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity.”

The FBI works to protect all victims of crimes, regardless of their country of national origin or immigration status. The FBI encourages victims and witnesses of any hate-related incident to report it to law enforcement. After a report is submitted, the FBI will work with its law enforcement partners and use its resources and expertise to determine if an incident meets the criminal standard. If you believe you are a victim or a witness of a hate crime, we encourage you to report it to the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or submitting a tip at tips.fbi.gov. You may remain anonymous.

The mission of the FBI is to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution of the United States. For more information, visit www.fbi.gov.

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)

Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch, Jr., today, joined by a dozen community leaders, announced the rollout of a public awareness campaign aimed at informing the public about the FBI’s role in investigating hate crimes, and encouraged people to report hate crimes that they have witnessed or experienced to 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov.

Beginning in August 2021 and continuing until early November, residents and commuters in New Jersey will see the “Protecting Our Communities Together” messages on New Jersey Transit buses, in rail stations, on trains, on billboards along major New Jersey roadways, and in digital ads on various websites. The message will also be carried through our outreach efforts and multiple community partnerships.

“First, we want the public to be aware that the FBI investigates these matters and places a very high level of priority on such incidents,” said Special Agent in Charge Crouch. “Second, we want victims and witnesses to feel secure in the fact that when they report incidents to us, we respect and value their privacy. Finally, we will be engaging more with those communities that may hesitate to report due to a lack of interaction with—or trust in—law enforcement. We can better protect the members of our communities when we work together.”

Hate crimes are the highest priority for the FBI’s civil rights program. A federal hate crime involves physical harm, threats, or intimidation based on bias toward an individual or group because of race, religion, gender, gender identity, physical limitations, national origin, or sexual orientation. New Jersey has experienced a rise in hate crimes in the past two years, especially with respect to race. Yet, the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Statistics believes the majority of hate crimes go unreported.

The FBI’s jurisdiction to investigate hate crimes is predicated on four federal statutes which include: 18USC245/247/249, and 42USC3631. While New Jersey’s state law includes bias incidents that don’t necessarily involve criminal activity, the FBI works closely with our state and local partners, even if a case may not result in federal charges.

Attending today’s press conference were representatives of the Hispanic, LGBTQ, Orthodox Jewish, Asian Indian, and Faith communities.

The messaging has been translated into 17 languages including Arabic, Bengali, Chinese-simplified, Chinese-traditional, Eastern Punjabi, French, Hebrew, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, Urdu, Vietnamese, and Yiddish.

As part of a national advertising campaign, the FBI’s 56 field offices received funding to promote awareness and encourage reporting to the 1-800-CALL-FBI number as well as through tips.fbi.gov.