Texas National Guard intercepts a migrant smuggled across the southern border in a government SUV near the Eagle Pass intersection.

usa news

by Richard Pollina

A Texas National Guard officer was arrested on suspicion of smuggling illegal immigrants to the southern border after leading authorities on a high-speed chase in a government-issued vehicle.

Warning: Graphic language

Savion Amari Donovan Johnson, a specialist dispatched to the Eagle Pass intersection, was charged Sunday with evading arrest, human smuggling and unlawful possession of a weapon.

Kinney County Sheriff Brad Coe said Johnson was killed in Brackettville, Texas, when the silver GMC SUV he was driving suddenly swerved at a Border Patrol checkpoint on Highway 674. He then allegedly engaged in a high-speed chase with officers. news nation.

Reaching speeds of more than 160 mph, body camera and dashcam footage showed Johnson being pulled from the vehicle and arrested by officers who led a 15-mile pursuit around 3:45 p.m. It's reflected.

Coe said the Texas Department of Public Safety assisted in the pursuit and used spike strips to stop the fleeing SUV.

The sheriff confirmed that Johnson, 26, was a member of the Texas National Guard and was assigned to Operation Lone Star.

According to reports, soldiers were allegedly promised $5,000 to $6,000 to smuggle illegal immigrants.

“If the allegations are true, the defendant is a traitor and a criminal,” Texas Governor Greg Abbott said in a statement to the media.

“We have zero tolerance for Texans who violate laws that directly contradict the mission we seek to accomplish.”