Newly released footage of a Venezuelan man's detainment shows federal agents forcefully tackling him during a chaotic scene that included knocking over an elderly man using a cane.
The incident occurred on February 20, 2025, at a New Hampshire courthouse, where agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive (ATF) tackled 33-year-old Arnuel Marquez Colmenarez, WMUR reported.
Colmenarez, an undocumented immigrant, was scheduled to be arraigned on charges of drunk driving, driving without a license, and failing to provide information after an accident, according to reporting by WMUR, but he never made it to his hearing. The agents approached Colmenarez as he was leaving an elevator and attempted to arrest him before he darted away, the released footage revealed.
Before detaining Colmenarez, the federal agents knocked over an elderly man using a cane. He later refused medical attention, WMUR reported.
Witnesses said they believed the agents used too much force on a person who passed through security and was not deemed a threat.
"Unacceptable. That's all I could think of," one witness told WMUR. "I was just so furious. I would not expect this in a courtroom in America."
Colmenarez was transferred to an ICE facility in Texas, according to Reuters. His arrest, criticized as overly forceful, also revealed cooperation between ICE and ATF agents and raised concerns about the Trump administration's prioritization of detaining undocumented immigrants over ensuring due process.
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