Charleston: Illegal immigrant who shot at police officers in raid confirmed dead

An undocumented immigrant of Mexican origin died after shooting at a law enforcement officer during an attempted arrest in Charleston County, in the state of South Carolina, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reported.

The suspect, identified as Floriberto Perez-Nieto, shot an officer in the chest on Feb. 11 while attempting to evade authorities in the vicinity of Charleston, South Carolina. According to DHS, the officer survived because he was wearing a bulletproof vest. Officers responded to the attack and wounded the suspect, who was transported to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

According to the investigation, officers initially went on the night of February 10 after receiving reports of shots fired on Johns Island, but were unable to locate the suspect at that time. Hours later, they received a further tip that led to the identification of Perez-Nieto's vehicle. When they attempted to stop him, the individual opened fire on one of the officers, which triggered the confrontation.

DHS Undersecretary Tricia McLaughlin noted in a statement that the suspect had obtained the weapon illegally and stressed that the bulletproof vest was key to saving the officer's life. "There could have been quite a different tragic outcome for this officer and his family," she said.

According to DHS, Pérez-Nieto had previously been deported from the United States on Feb. 20, 2019 after illegally entering from Mexico. He subsequently re-entered the country without authorization on an unspecified date and had a record for illegal re-entry, federal authorities said.