An illegal alien, accused of causing St. Johns County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Michael Kunovich’s death, says his “constitutional rights” have been violated and he is the victim of police brutality as well as racial profiling.
As Breitbart News reported, 19-year-old illegal alien Virgilio Aguilar-Mendez of Guatemala was arrested in May 2023 and has been charged with resisting an officer with violence and manslaughter in connection with Kunovich’s death.
Aguilar-Mendez’s defense attorney, Phillip Arroyo, told First Coast News that has threatened to file a federal lawsuit if St. Johns County prosecutors do not drop their charges against his client.
“Mr. Virgilio was a victim of police brutality. He was a victim of racial profiling,” Arroyo said. “He was a victim of violation of his fourth, fifth, and sixth amendment constitutional rights. Those who are responsible for this abuse will be held accountable.”
Arroyo also said the charges against Aguilar-Mendez are some “of the greatest injustices he’s ever seen” in the court system, calling them a “grave injustice” and “disheartening.”
The threat of a federal lawsuit comes as a local judge recently found Aguilar-Mendez incompetent to stand trial and ordered him to undergo competency treatment while he remains in St. Johns County custody.
According to police, on May 19, Kunovich lawfully attempted to pat down Aguilar-Mendez while he was sitting outside of a closed business. Aguilar-Mendez, instead of complying, tried to flee from Kunovich. When other officers got involved, Aguilar-Mendez continued resisting.
Eventually, Kunovich was on the ground in a struggle with Aguilar-Mendez who attempted to grab the officer’s taser off his person. The struggle lasted for more than six minutes. Afterward, Aguilar-Mendez was handcuffed but pulled out a pocketknife, which was quickly taken from him.
Following the struggle with Aguilar-Mendez, Kunovich collapsed on the ground. First responders administered lifesaving measures, but he was pronounced dead after being rushed to a nearby hospital.
Aguilar-Mendez is an illegal alien from Guatemala. He arrived at the United States-Mexico border last year and was subsequently released into the United States. According to his attorney, Aguilar-Mendez had been working on a farm and sending money back to Guatemala.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at
