A handcuffed man, a crowded Salt Lake City Home Depot parking lot, and a quick getaway in a Volkswagen are now at the center of a federal case against a local couple accused of helping the man slip away from immigration agents last fall.
Prosecutors say the October escape was no spur-of-the-moment misunderstanding. According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Utah, 21-year-old Kelzie Ryann Luna and 22-year-old George Sanchez-Juarez were charged by misdemeanor information on May 8, with theft, conversion, and disposal of government property and aiding and abetting. The government property in question: the set of handcuffs agents had placed on the man who ran.
As reported by KSL, the incident unfolded on Oct. 8, 2025, at the Home Depot at 328 W. 2100 South, where federal agents were conducting a targeted enforcement action looking for four people who had previously been deported. Surveillance and bystander video captured a handcuffed man bolting across a busy street and jumping into a waiting Volkswagen. Investigators later dug through the passenger's Instagram account, according to court documents cited by KSL, and say posts and voice messages ended up linking the pair to the escape.
What prosecutors allege
In court filings, prosecutors describe a chaotic scene in which the handcuffed man ran while an agent turned to deal with another detainee. Luna and Sanchez-Juarez are accused of swooping in, picking him up in the Volkswagen, and driving him to a friend's house. From there, authorities say, the pair bought bolt cutters and removed the restraints, effectively destroying government property in the process.
The U.S. Attorney's Office says the story did not end with the alleged jailbreak. Prosecutors contend the defendants later posted video of the aftermath and "cursed ICE" on social media, turning what might have been a quiet investigation into something closer to a digital victory lap. Their initial appearance in the case was scheduled for May 29 in federal court.
Legal context
The charges outlined in the misdemeanor information are all federal misdemeanors. As the U.S. Attorney's Office notes, that filing is only an allegation and not proof of wrongdoing. Luna and Sanchez-Juarez, like any defendants, are presumed innocent unless and until prosecutors convince a judge or jury otherwise.
The case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah.
What's next
For now, court records show Luna and Sanchez-Juarez have been released under conditions that include a ban on interfering with any future immigration detentions while the case works its way through the federal system. Any new motions, hearings, or trial dates will appear on the public docket at the federal courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City, where the unusual Home Depot escape is now a matter of official record.
