Prosecutors say Jose Santiago Pantoja-Morales was in the U.S. illegally; a grand jury indicted him Sept. 16 on a federal firearm-possession charge. He allegedly took a Dallas ISD officer’s gun and shot him in the femoral artery of his right leg during an Aug. 6 struggle.
A co-worker flagged down the officer after Pantoja-Morales had left the car and entered the freeway median; the officer offered him a ride to a safe place. Prosecutors say he began rummaging through the officer’s bag, prompting the officer to pull over and try to remove him. After being wounded, the officer regained control of his gun. Pantoja-Morales fled but was quickly apprehended, prosecutors said. Another DISD officer treated the wounded officer at the scene before he was taken to Parkland Hospital.
Pantoja-Morales is awaiting transfer to federal custody under a writ of habeas corpus filed Wednesday. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in federal prison.
