A man, suspected of human smuggling, drove off when Border Patrol agents attempted to stop him at a checkpoint on Wednesday in the East County of San Diego.
According to the U.S. Border Patrol, agents noticed a man driving a Nissan Xterra pick up 5 people walking near the U.S.-Mexico border in the town of Boulevard. When they attempted to pull him over, the driver refused to stop and then tried to slam into a Border Patrol vehicle.
The 27-year old man drove onto the Interstate 8 and did not stop even after agents deployed a spike strip, continuing to drive for approximately one mile with two flattened tires.
Border Patrol says the man and his passengers got out of the SUV while it was still moving and attempted to run away on foot. During an encounter with the driver, agents say he pulled out a knife against agents who in turn, deployed a taser.
The man, a U.S. citizen, was arrested and is in custody for charges related to human smuggling. The five other individuals, identified as Mexican nationals, were also taken into custody.
