Officials with the Department of Homeland Security have revealed that a man who was accused of shooting a South Carolina deputy in the chest during an early morning traffic stop has been identified as a criminal illegal alien with a rap sheet that includes a prior deportation and a felony conviction for illegal re-entry. The officials also said that Charleston County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a call for shots fired a little after 9 p.m. on February 10, 2026, on Johns Island.
When they arrived on the scene, they were unable to locate the suspect involved in the incident. However, thanks to a second call from the same individual, local law enforcement was informed that Floriberto Perez-Nieto, an illegal migrant hailing from Mexico, was back in the area. Deputies spotted the suspect’s car and tried to pull him over, but he attempted to flee, shooting one of the deputies in the chest.
As soon as shots were fired, other deputies leapt into action, sending a hail of bullets toward Perez-Nieto, who was struck and later died at the hospital. Thankfully, the deputy who was on the receiving end of Perez-Nieto’s bullet was wearing body armor. “This criminal illegal alien illegally obtained a firearm and nearly killed a law enforcement officer,” DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Thankfully, the officer’s body armor saved his life. There could have been quite a different tragic outcome for this officer and his family.”
According to Fox News, the identity of the deputy who was shot has not been publicly released. Perez-Nieto was previously arrested for entering the United States illegally from Mexico, though the date and exact location are unknown. He was not inspected by an immigration officer. The suspect was then booted from the country on February 20, 2019.
Officials stated that he committed a felony by re-entering the country illegally. Again, the date and time are unknown. Law enforcement officers investigating the incident say they are not sure how Perez-Nieto obtained the firearm. As is standard procedure for officer-involved shootings, the deputies have been placed on paid administrative leave, pending a review of the incident, according to a news release published by the sheriff’s office.
A similar incident occurred in October 2025 when an illegal alien from Mexico rammed into law enforcement vehicles in an attempt to free his car and escape arrest. According to AOL, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent confronted the suspect and used his service weapon to smash a window in the vehicle. As the officer tried to grab Parias, it’s believed his weapon went off, which then led to both the officer and Carlitos Ricardo Parias, 44, being injured.
Parias, a popular streamer on TikTok, has documented a number of ICE traffic stops and enforcement operations around the city of Los Angeles on his account, which has 133,000 followers. Parias sustained an injury to his elbow, while the officer was struck in the hand by a ricochet bullet. Both were taken to the hospital at the time. The identity of the officer was not released to the public.
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