An off-duty federal officer who fired his gun at a car that cut him off has a history of aggressive behavior, according to news reports.
Angel Echevarria, an officer with the Department of Homeland Security, was recently arrested and charged with aggressive assault and shooting into an occupied vehicle in Boca Raton, Fla. after opening fire on a red Toyota that had committed a traffic infraction.
According to the arrest affidavit, Echevarria claimed he was trying to shoot the tires of the Toyota to prevent it from fleeing the scene. But authorities concluded that too much time has elapsed between the traffic violation and the shooting to justify the latter. There were three people in the Toyota, including a two-year-old child, NBC news reports.
“There’s no reason to do that,” said former New York State Patrol Captain Robert Buchholz, in a statement to local news. “Not for an off-duty police officer, a federal officer or a civilian.”
The details of Echevarria’s arrest were not immediately released, causing one local news outlet to accuse the authorities of protecting the federal officer.
Echevarria is no stranger to controversy. Sean Davis, a contributor to The Daily Caller, reported a strange encounter with him in 2008. Davis claimed that Echevarria crashed into his car, threatened him and violated his rights. He pressed the city of Alexandria, Va. to investigate the incident, but no report was ever released. (RELATED: To protect and serve? Stories from readers)
“I strongly believe that Mr. Echevarria used his position as an armed federal officer to intimidate me into giving up my rights and liberties,” wrote Davis.
The Boca Raton Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.