U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued an immigration hold for Jeinson Hernandez-Moran, who is charged with attempted second-degree murder in Knoxville after he allegedly struck another person in the head with a pickaxe. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reportedly confirmed Hernandez-Moran is an illegal immigrant.
The Knoxville Police Department (KPD) reported the incident on Sunday, when it revealed a suspect was detained, and later confirmed Hernandez-Moran was charged with attempted second-degree murder after police claimed he “critically injured another man,” who remained hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
A witness reportedly told police Hernandez-Moran (pictured above) struck the victim in the head repeatedly with a pickaxe, according to WATE 6, which revealed: “officers reportedly found the victim lying in his bed with the pick-axe embedded in his skull.”
Hernandez-Moran reportedly left the scene after the attack but later returned and surrendered to law enforcement.
Police additionally confirmed Hernandez-Moran was booked into the Roger D. Wilson Detention Facility on Sunday. The Knox County Sheriff’s Office website now shows him being held at the request of ICE. His first court date is scheduled for September 18.
According to 10 News, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed Hernandez-Moran is a Guatemalan citizen, but the outlet reported that DHS did not know when he entered the United States or how he arrived in the country.
The Republican National Committee (RNC) connected the attack to the Biden-Harris administration.
“The victim was found ‘with a pickaxe embedded in his skull,” the RNC Research account wrote in a post to the social media platform X. “Another victim of Border Czar Kamala’s OPEN BORDER.”
HARRIS MIGRANT CRIME: An illegal alien has been arrested after attacking a Tennessee man with a PICKAXE.
The victim was found "with a pickaxe embedded in his skull."
Another victim of Border Czar Kamala's OPEN BORDER. pic.twitter.com/f2sLYMSKy8
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 4, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris was titled President Joe Biden’s “Border Czar” by multiple media outlets in early 2021 when Biden tasked his vice president with addressing the origins of the illegal immigration crisis at the southern border. Still, many of the same media outlets scrambled to distance, explain, or excise references to Harris as the “Border Czar” after she became the party’s presumptive nominee.
The U.S. House successfully passed a resolution “strongly condemning” Harris for her “Border Czar” performance, which specifically blamed the Harris-Biden administration for not “securing the U.S. Border,” and noted that at least 9.7 million illegal immigrants have entered the country since January 2021.
Polls have shown a majority of Americans remain opposed to illegal immigration, though almost half of U.S. voters expect it will increase if Harris wins the election in November.
By contrast, 60 percent of voters told pollsters illegal immigration is likely to decrease under former President Donald Trump.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
