Student mistakenly pulled over by cops ends up in federal custody

A student’s life has been completely upturned after she was taken into custody when police mistakenly pulled her over for an illegal turn.

A student has found herself in federal custody in the US after she was mistakenly pulled over by cops in Georgia.

Local police wrongly accused Ximena Arias-Cristobal of making an illegal turn at a red light after an officer confused her with another driver, reports The New York Post.

During the stop, authorities said the 19-year-old Mexican national didn’t have a proper driver’s license and was taken into custody. As Arias-Cristobal arrived in the US with her family illegally in 2010, when she was just 4-years-old, she was later detained by immigration enforcement authorities.

All traffic charges have now been dropped by Dalton police, however Arias-Cristobel’s lawyer told The New York Post it’s “too little, too late” for his client, who remains in custody.

Ximena Arias-Cristobal, who has lived most of her life in the US, is being detained as an illegal immigrant after being mistakenly pulled over after cops. Picture: GoFundMe

The teenager and her family arrived in the US illegally in 2010, when she was just 4. Picture: GoFundMe

“It’s super maddening,” said lawyer Dustin Baxter, “We’ll give them the benefit of the doubt and say there was no ill intent on the part of this police officer, it’s just heartbreaking that a mistake by a police officer cost this person her freedom ultimately and may cost her residency in the United States.”

Arias-Cristobel’s legal turmoil began when police believed she failed to adhere to a “no turn on red” sign and was then found to not have a proper driver’s license, according to an arrest report.

She told an officer she had an international driver’s license, the report states.

“My understanding is she didn’t drive very often just because of the general fear in that part of the state of driving because there are a lot of roadblocks and traffic stops,” Baxter said, adding the stop was “her worst nightmare.”

A review of the dashcam footage showed the Dalton police officer witnessed a black pick-up truck make an illegal turn on red, but he was unable to pull the car over right away, officials said.

As the officer looked for the offending truck, he instead pulled over Arias-Cristobel’s dark grey Dodge truck, the city said.

The student was pulled over after cops mistook her car for another that had performed an illegal turn. Picture: Dalton Police

Dashcam video shows the cop car trailing her truck and eventually pulling her over in a parking lot. She told the cop the Dodge belonged to her mother’s friend whom she was helping, the footage shows.

When the officer determined she didn’t have a license, he slapped handcuffs on her.

“So in the state of Georgia, when you drive without a license, you know what happens? You ever been to jail? Well, you’re going,” the cop said, according to footage.

The student has been at a federal detention centre since last week after she was initially booked on May 5.

Her father, Jose Francisco Arias-Tovar, has also been in that same federal facility ahead of possible deportation since last month after he was pulled over for allegedly speeding.

A hearing is set for May 20 in which Baxter will attempt to convince an immigration court Arias-Cristobel isn’t a danger to the community or flight risk, and should be released before her deportation hearing at a later date.

This article originally appeared in The New York Post and was reproduced with permission.