Willcox man who tried to stab customs officer indicted on federal assault charge

Brian J. Pedersen Arizona Daily Star
July 15, 2010 11:24 am

An 18-year-old Willcox man arrested earlier this month for attempting to stab a customs officer at the U.S.-Mexico border has been indicted on federal assault charges.

Ricardo Antonio Lomas was indicted Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Tucson on one count of assault on a federal officer, court records show.

Lomas was walking into the U.S. from Mexico at the Douglas Port of Entry on July 1 when he walked up to a counter and began throwing items onto the counter "in an aggressive manner," according to court records.

He asked a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer if he was at the port of entry, and at the time the officer noticed Lomas had his hands in his pockets, court records show.

When Lomas was asked to remove his hands he said "what's your name?" to the customs officer and at the same time took a sharp object from his pocket and lunged at the officer's chest, court records show.

Customs officials were able to force Lomas to the ground, at which time they noticed a 3.5-inch stainless steel pocket knife on the ground next to him, according to court records.

When asked what he planned to do with the knife Lomas told the officer "I was going to stab you."

Lomas is scheduled to be arraigned July

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