A Salvadoran woman has been sentenced to over a year in prison for assaulting a U.S. Border Patrol agent. Erika Jasmin Lobato-Melendez, 27, was convicted after an incident on May 29, 2024, where she bit an agent's forearm during an encounter near the border wall.

The complaint details that Lobato-Melendez was part of a group of five individuals approached by the Border Patrol. When the agent attempted to detain them, Lobato-Melendez resisted and clung to the border wall. In response to efforts to remove her from the fence, she bit the agent, causing injuries including bruising and swelling. Despite being subdued on the ground, she continued her aggressive actions by attempting another bite and kicking at the agent.

Following her imprisonment of 12 months and one day, Lobato-Melendez will face two years of supervised release along with deportation proceedings.

The announcement came from U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez, Chief Patrol Agent Walter "Neil" Slosar of the U.S. Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office.

The investigation was conducted by the Las Cruces Resident Agency of the FBI with assistance from the U.S. Border Patrol. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher S. McNair.