Phoenix woman sentenced for 'alien smuggling' and federal agent assault

A 25-year-old Phoenix woman has received 27 months in prison after pleading guilty to two offenses, including assaulting a federal officer by dragging the agent alongside her vehicle for several hundred feet, authorities said.

Shatasia Emoney Sanders Taylor, 25, of Phoenix, was sentenced this month by U.S. District Judge Rosemary Márquez. Her prison term will be followed by 36 months of supervised release.

Taylor pleaded guilty to alien smuggling and assault of a federal officer on Sept. 6, according to a release from the Arizona district of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

U.S. Border Patrol agents saw Taylor on Feb. 7, 2023, “picking up suspected undocumented noncitizens in a desert area near Bisbee,” the release stated.

“An agent approached the vehicle while it was stationary. As he reached his arm through the passenger door window, Taylor hit the gas pedal.”

The agent was dragged alongside the vehicle, which stopped after several hundred feet. In the backseat of the vehicle, agents discovered three people whom Taylor was illegally transporting further into the United States.

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