An illegal alien wielding a knife chased and lunged at U.S. Attorney John A. Sarcone III Tuesday night outside an Albany, New York, hotel, according to the Times Union.
That man, identified as Saul Morales-Garcia, is a previously convicted felon from El Salvador, according to WNYT. He was charged Wednesday with attempted murder, menacing, and criminal possession of a weapon, according to ABC 10 TV in Albany.
Sarcone told the Times Union that he was walking toward the hotel and smoking a cigar when Morales-Garcia, 41, drew his attention. Morales-Garcia spoke to him in a foreign language and ultimately ran toward Sarcone with a knife in his hand. Sarcone went into the hotel and called local Sheriff Craig Apple, while keeping an eye on Morales-Garcia. Sarcone had Apple’s number in his cell phone. Police arrived shortly and arrested Morales-Garcia.
The Times Union reported that Morales-Garcia has “criminal charges pending in Georgia, Virginia, Pennsylvania and federal court.” He was already deported in 2010 and reentered the U.S. illegally. Local authorities confirmed to the Times Union that Morales-Garcia is in the country illegally.
Morales-Garcia is expected back in court next week, and a grand jury investigation is likely, according to WNYT. Morales-Garcia did not know Sarcone is a U.S. attorney, law enforcement told the Union Times.
It is not surprising that Morales-Garcia was living in New York’s capital city. It has been a good place to hide. Albany is a long-time sanctuary city that in the past has refused to allow local law enforcement to share criminal information with federal immigration agents.
In February, Albany was among the cities that faced a “federal funding review” by the Department of Justice for its sanctuary status.
Last month, the Trump Administration included Albany on a list of 15 New York regions still working against federal immigration laws, but the list has been removed from the Department of Homeland Security website.
Morales-Garcia is not the only illegal alien drawing the attention of authorities with alleged criminal actions.
Last week, Emiliano Garduno-Galvez, an illegal alien from Mexico, was charged with attempted murder for allegedly heaving a Molotov cocktail at law enforcement during the Los Angeles riots. Earlier this month, illegal alien Mohamed Soliman allegedly threw Molotov cocktails into a crowd of Jews and set some on fire in Boulder, Colorado.
Perhaps criminal behavior is a testament to how comfortable and entitled they have felt in the U.S. before President Donald Trump took office and cracked down on illegal immigration. Or maybe criminal behavior is what we should naturally expect from people who started their relationship with this country by entering or remaining here illegally.
Beth Brelje is an elections correspondent for The Federalist. She is an award-winning investigative journalist with decades of media experience.