By Steve Neavling
A jury found two men guilty of carjacking an FBI employee at gunpoint and kidnapping him after they fled police in South Dakota in May 2022, the Justice Department announced Thursday.
Juan Francisco Alvarez-Sorto, 25, of El Salvador, and Deyvin Morales, 29, of Guatemala, were convicted of kidnapping, carjacking, brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and unlawful reentry after deportation.
The two men, along with Karla Alejandra Lopez-Gutierrez, traveled from Colorado to southwestern South Dakota to distribute meth, fentanyl and heroin when local police tried to pull them over. The trio sped away and eluded law enforcement before hiding in a remote area near Red Shirt.
After the chase, the group hid out and decided to “carjack the next vehicle to come along,” prosecutors said in a news release.
That vehicle was an FBI-issued car driven by a victim specialist for the bureau.
The victim specialist pulled over along the side of the street when the car driven by the defendants pulled out behind him. He thought he was being pulled over by police.
But instead, Alvarez was at the side of his car, pointing a rifle at him.
The trio hopped into the FBI vehicle while the victim sat in the front seat. While at a gas station, the victim ran out of the car and into the store.
The trio drove to Rapid City, where they abandoned the FBI vehicle.
They were later arrested at a house in Colorado, where law enforcement found firearms, including the rifle used in the carjacking.
Lopez-Gutierrez took a plea deal.
“Every day, men and women in the Department of Justice respond to incidents of violent crime in South Dakota,” U.S. Attorney Alison Ramsdell said in a statement. “This dedication to improving community safety often comes with great personal sacrifice, and as this case unfortunately demonstrates, on occasion, an extreme risk to personal safety. We are grateful to our partners at the FBI for their dogged commitment to this difficult work, and we hope these convictions send a clear message about the lengths the U.S. Attorney’s Office is willing to go to vindicate the rights of victims, no matter who they are.”
Alvin M. Winston Sr., special agent in charge of the FBI’s Minneapolis Field Office, said the bureau is committed to its employees.
“The FBI will not tolerate violence and threats to harm its personnel,” Winston said. “Thank you to our law enforcement partners and the USAO-SD for their hard work and unwavering dedication. This verdict stands as a testament to our commitment to ensuring the safety and security of every member of the FBI. Justice will be relentlessly pursued against those who seek to harm or intimidate any of our workforce.”
