Woman faces deportation after allegedly assaulting man in MAGA hat
The suspect is married to a U.S. citizen, her attorney said.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has arrested a woman who allegedly assaulted a man wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat earlier this month.
Rosiane Santos was detained by federal agents after video surfaced on Feb. 15 of her grabbing a man's red cap and throwing it on the floor at a Mexican restaurant in Massachusetts.
Santos, a citizen of Brazil who's in the country illegally, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Fugitive Operations Team on Monday and was being processed for deportation, immigration officials told ABC News.
"Santos is currently facing local charges for assault and other offenses," an ICE spokesperson said in a statement. "She has since been released from ICE custody after being entered into removal proceedings in federal immigration court and provided a Notice to Appear at a future date before an immigration court.”
Bryton Turner, the Facebook user who posted the footage, said he was the man targeted by Santos.
"I'm just trying to sit here and eat a nice meal," Turner says in the video as Santos grabs his hat and pulls it over his eyes. "You see this? People like that, that's the problem. That's the problem with America these days."
In a second video, Santos can be seen speaking to two uniformed officers at the restaurant.
"Went out with some friends trying to enjoy some dinner and drinks when this ignoramus randomly tried to hit my hat off and started yelling at me (assault + drunk and disorderly)," Turner wrote in the video's caption. "I wasn't going to press charges, but in front of four cops she did it again, so now she's going to jail."
The Facebook post had racked up more than 2,000 reactions and comments as of early Wednesday.
Turner said he never planned to press charges on the woman, but he definitely understands why she was arrested.
"I was shocked to hear the news. I always give people the benefit of the doubt. I never would’ve assumed she was an illegal," he told ABC News on Wednesday. "However this country has laws in place to protect the citizens of this country and they must be obeyed. That’s what makes this country great."
The 23-year-old said he was surprised by the amount of attention he received after uploading the video, which he said made him the target of online threats.
"I took the video to try to get the woman to leave me alone. I never wanted the attention although I think it’s deserved," he said. "Just because you don’t agree with someone doesn’t mean you act the way this woman did on that night. I think there’s a serious attack on our first amendment rights these days coming from both sides of the political spectrum."
Santos was arraigned last week and is expected back in court on March 20.
Her immigration attorney, Katarina Kozakova, said she plans to address the charges against her client in criminal court, according to local new outlet Boston.com.
Kozakova said Santos has a pending green card application and is married to a U.S. citizen.