Illegal immigrants carrying fentanyl lead police on chase through cornfield | Law Enforcement Today

GRUNDY COUNTY, IL - Fox News has obtained exclusive video that show the intense moments from a high-speed vehicle chase through a cornfield as law enforcement pursued two illegal immigrants allegedly carrying fentanyl.

The incident took place in 2024 in Grundy County, which is a primarily rural county northwest of Chicago. A Grundy County official said that the state sanctuary policies allowed the two illegal immigrants from Honduras to travel through the county unchecked. The footage, which was taken on October 24, 2024, shows the two illegal immigrants, 18-year-old Robyin Barahona and 23-year-old Cristhian Anahel Erazo Velasquez, swerving in a car through the cornfield.

In order to get them to stop, authorities rammed a vehicle into their car. After the car was rammed, the two men fled their sedan on foot and officers continued their pursuit. Footage taken later shows law enforcement discovering a deadly payload of seven pounds of fentanyl in the illegal immigrants' burned-out vehicle.

Both men were charged with controlled substance trafficking, possession with intent to deliver fentanyl, and resisting arrest. However, due to the Illinois SAFE-T Act, which abolished Illinois' cash bail system back in 2023, Barahona was released without bail. He allegedly fled to California. Velasquez remains in custody and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has filed a detainer against him.

Despite the detainer, Illinois sanctuary laws continue to prevent local law enforcement from sharing information with federal immigration officials about Velasquez. Grundy County Board Chairman Drew Muffler voiced his frustration with the sanctuary laws, telling Fox News that "because we are a sanctuary state, it allowed for illegal bad actors to be traveling with seven pounds of fentanyl through our county."

He added, "I don't agree with putting handcuffs on law enforcement and preventing them from working effectively with federal authorities. By restricting law enforcement's ability to enforce the law, we are undermining public safety."

Grundy County was the first of several dozen counties in Illinois that defied the state by enacting a non-sanctuary ordinance. This comes after an influx of over 51,000 immigrants that were bussed to Chicago since the summer of 2022. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson recently doubled down on the city's sanctuary policies, saying in a recent ABC 7 Chicago interview, "We will always remain a welcoming and sanctuary space."

Johnson vowed to resist the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration and called the decision to allow ICE to carry out enforcement and removal operations on church and school properties "unconscionable and reprehensible."

In a separate incident, the Bexar County Sheriff's Office and several federal agencies in Texas arrested three alleged human smugglers and recovered $20,000 in cash. According to KSAT, the suspects have been identified as 47-year-old Wilfredo Cruz Flores from El Salvador, 27-year-old Hector Alonzo Rodriguez Viera from Venezuela, and 36-year-old Juan Carlos Segura Piñon from Mexico.

The arrests occurred during a traffic stop on Wednesday, February 12th. The trio were driving a stolen pick-up truck and attempted to evade border checkpoints by traveling across multiple ranches. Through their investigation, the Sheriff's Office learned that the three men had been allegedly involved in human smuggling activity outside of Bexar County.

The men would smuggle immigrants in stolen vehicles and received compensation for their smuggling efforts. The Sheriff's Office believes the Mexican cartel was involved in the alleged smuggling activity. Flores has been charged with money laundering, engaging in organized criminal activity, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.

Viera has been charged with money laundering and engaging in criminal activity. Piñon has been charged with engaging in criminal activity and money laundering. All three were transported and booked into the Bexar County Adult Detention Center.