CHARLOTTE, NC – Last week, Luis Pineda-Anchecta, 38, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for an incredibly violent kidnapping that occurred in 2019. The victim, his ex-girlfriend, only escaped with her life because she was able to fight-off the Honduran national, as he attempted to drag her into the woods.
Following his conviction, the U.S. Attorney's Office stated:
As alleged in the criminal complaint, on the evening of May 21, 2019, F.M. (The victim is identified in court documents as F.M.) was approached by two masked men as she was walking to her vehicle parked at her apartment complex in Charlotte. The victim recognized one of the masked men as the defendant, who allegedly proceeded to grab the victim by the arm, stuff a cloth in her mouth, and then wrap a cord or rope around her head so the cloth would stay in place. The complaint alleges that Pineda-Anchecta and the other masked man then forced F.M. against her will into the passenger seat of a vehicle.
As alleged in the complaint, Pineda-Anchecta then told F.M. “I love you and I’m going to kill you.” The complaint alleges that the other masked individual did not accompany Pineda-Anchecta and F.M. in the vehicle.
According to allegations in the criminal complaint, Pineda-Anchecta drove his vehicle on Lancaster Highway. While Pineda-Anchecta was driving, the complaint alleges that he maintained a tight grip on the plastic rope tied around the victim’s face. According to the complaint, after traveling a short while on Lancaster Highway, Pineda-Anchecta parked his vehicle on the side of the road near a wooden area and turned off the vehicle’s engine. Pineda-Anchecta maintained his grip on the plastic rope around F.M.’s face, and allegedly pulled the victim out of the car and dragged her toward the wooded area near the road.
The complaint alleges that, following a struggle between Pineda-Anchecta and F.M., the victim was able to escape and run into the middle of the highway, and was assisted by motorists who stopped to offer help.
Pineda-Anchecta fled the scene on foot and was taken into custody a short time later. However, only days earlier, the illegal alien was arrested not once, but twice, and both times he was released from the Mecklenburg County Jail, despite ICE detainers, and despite the fact that Pineda-Anchecta had been deported at least once from this country.
On May 15, 2019, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officers arrested Pineda-Anchecta on multiple charges, including assault by strangulation, assault on a female, violation of a protection order and communicating threats. He was released from custody two days after his arrest.
Incredibly, he was arrested again, following a standoff with the SWAT team, and released once again from the Mecklenburg County Jail.
In January 2020, he was taken into federal custody, which is the only reason he was convicted and sentenced for his crimes, rather than relying on the local sheriff to keep the foreign national in custody.
*So, why was a previously deported criminal alien with such a violent history simply released back into the community upon which he preys?
Because, since taking office in 2018, Mecklenburg County Sheriff Gary McFadden has refused to honor federal immigration detainers, no matter the charges against the illegal alien.
