Virgilio Aguilar Méndez will be released from prison after being imprisoned for eight months, although it is not yet clear when, after his charges were dismissed this Friday, as confirmed by the Seventh District State Attorney's Office.
The Guatemalan immigrant was accused of the "natural" death of the police officer who arrested him at the end of May 2023.
At the moment,
Aguilar remains in federal custody and faces a deportation order.
"We hope he gets out soon," his attorney said.
The 19-year-old – of indigenous origin who speaks neither English nor Spanish, but a variation of Mayan known as Mam – was detained outside a hotel in St. Augustine, Florida.
In January of this year, images of the violent arrest and details of the charges against him sparked outrage, with many demanding his release.
“Recent expert testimony regarding the defendant's inability to understand the English language, his cultural background, and concerns about his intellectual capacity have raised important issues for consideration in the case,” the state attorney's office explained in a statement.
“Furthermore, based on the court's recent ruling that the defendant is incompetent to proceed," based on expert testimony,
"the charges are dismissed.
"Arrest and time served (in prison) are enough."
Following the arrest, Sergeant Michael Paul Kunovich of the St. Johns County Sheriff's Department collapsed.
“He suffered a massive heart attack and died,” Phillip Arroyo, Aguilar's lawyer, told Noticias Telemundo at the time.
The young man was charged with aggravated manslaughter and another felony charge of resisting arrest.
The charges, according to Arroyo, were "brazen."
A forensic report from June considered the sergeant's death "natural" and detailed that he suffered from hypertension and cardiovascular disease that caused a cardiac arrhythmia, which was influenced by the effort he made to stop the young immigrant, who was 18 at the time. years.
With information from
First Coast News