For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Kentucky
FRANKFORT, Ky. – A Lexington, Ky., woman, Xochitl Sonia Navarro, 45, was sentenced on Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove to 36 months in prison, for assaulting, resisting, or impeding federal officers in the performance of their official duties.
According to Navarro’s plea agreement, on October 8, 2024, ICE-ERO officers began an operation to arrest Jorge Iban Cuellar-Avendano, a citizen of Mexico who had illegally re-entered the United States. Cuellar-Avendano had previously evaded arrest by fleeing in a vehicle. On this occasion, officers observed the fugitive and Navarro, the driver, get into the vehicle. When officers approached the vehicle, Navarro refused to open its doors, and attempted to evade the officers by lunging, accelerating and attempting to flee. In doing so, three officers suffered cuts, abrasions, and bruising; one officer was knocked to the ground and dragged by the vehicle, causing deep lacerations on both arms. Officers ultimately had to break the window to stop the vehicle…