Former US Marine charged in Texas attack

Benjamin Hanil Song, a former US Marine reservist, has been arrested and charged with attempted murder after a July 4 attack at a Texas immigration detention centre. The assault involved multiple armed suspects, fireworks, and left one officer wounded

Washington: A former US Marine Corps reservist has been arrested and charged with attempted murder in connection with an attack at a Texas immigration detention centre in which a police officer was shot in the neck, federal prosecutors said on Tuesday.

Benjamin Hanil Song, 32, is the latest person charged in the Fourth of July assault in which attackers dressed in black military-style clothing opened fire outside the Prairieland Detention Centre in Alvarado, southwest of Dallas, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas.

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Song, from Dallas, was arrested after a week-long search and has been charged with three counts of attempted murder of federal agents and three counts of discharging a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, the office said in a statement. He is accused of purchasing four of the guns linked to the attack, it said.

US District Court records do not list names of attorneys representing Song or scheduled court appearances. US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas did not immediately respond to an email asking whether Song has an attorney. The officer wounded in the attack has since been released from the hospital.

Ten people, most of them from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, have previously been charged with attempted murder of a federal officer and discharging a firearm in relation to a crime of violence. Another person has been charged with obstruction of justice for concealing evidence, while two others were charged with accessory after the fact for allegedly helping Song get away.

If convicted, most of the defendants could face up to life imprisonment, while those charged with obstruction of justice and accessory after the fact would face lesser penalties if convicted, according to federal prosecutors.

The shooting took place as President Donald Trump’s administration ramps up deportations. The attackers initially set off fireworks and spray-painted vehicles and a guard structure, including the words “Ice Pig”, according to a criminal complaint. This was “designed to lure correctional officers outside the facility”, according to US Attorney’s Office.

Correctional officers called 911 and an Alvarado police officer responded and someone in the woods opened fire. Another person across the street fired 20 to 30 rounds at correctional officers who were unarmed after they walked out of the facility, according to the office’s statement. After the group fled, sheriff’s deputies stopped seven people about 300 yards from where the officer was shot, according to a criminal complaint.

“They were dressed in black, military-style clothing, some had on body armour, some were covered in mud, some were armed, and some had radios,” the complaint said. A sheriff’s office detective also stopped a van leaving the area and found two AR-style rifles and a pistol, along with ballistic-style vests and a helmet, the complaint said.

The driver, the only person in the van, said he had been at the detention centre. He said he had met some people online and drove some of them to the detention centre from Dallas to “make some noise”, according to the complaint.

Song’s cellphone’s location data shows it was near the detention centre from about 11.30 p.m. on July 4 and throughout the day on July 5, according to a criminal complaint. “Though Song escaped by hiding overnight after the attack, we were confident he would not remain hidden for long,” Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Nancy E. Larson said in a statement.

“The fourteen individuals who planned and participated in these heinous acts will be prosecuted, and we expect justice will be swift.”