Emilio Rodrguez-Arroyo was indicted on Thursday, June 30, by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico for obstruction of justice and deprivation of rights under colour of law. The defendant was detained by federal authorities after being arrested today on these allegations.
Court records state that Emilio Rodrguez-Arroyo, a correctional officer at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, injured a prisoner by using excessive force while the prisoner was restrained with handcuffs behind his back and without resisting.
Rodrguez-Arroyo violated victim E.R.R.’s right under the Eighth Amendment to be free from cruel and unusual punishment on November 8, 2021.
According to the indictment, the defendant assaulted E.R.R. when he was tied behind his back, not resisting, and under the supervision of other officers, striking him in the head and face area. Rodrguez-Arroyo purposefully lied to a senior Bureau of Prisons (BOP) officer about the incident after it happened.
In front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Giselle López-Soler of the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, the defendant made his first court appearance today. For the civil rights violation count, the maximum sentence is 10 years in jail, and for the obstruction of justice count, the maximum sentence is 20 years.
The announcement was made by Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department, U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow of the District of Puerto Rico, Special Agent in Charge Joseph González of the FBI San Juan Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge James F. Boyersmith of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Miami Field Office.
The situation is being looked into by the FBI and the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Justice.
The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Eric Peffley of the Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Alum for the District of Puerto Rico.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.