After U of U student’s detainment by ICE, Colorado AG files suit against Mesa County deputy
Jul 22, 2025, 7:37 PM
On June 5, Caroline Dias Goncalves was arrested by U.S. immigration officials and taken to an ICE facility in Aurora, Colorado. She was held for two weeks before she was let go. Now, the Colorado Attorney General has sued a Mesa County Sheriff's deputy for his involvement in detaining the student. (Caroline Dias Goncalves family)
(Caroline Dias Goncalves family)
SALT LAKE CITY — The Colorado Attorney General has filed a lawsuit in Mesa County District Court against one of that county’s sheriff deputies. It requires him to follow state laws that prevent state agency and local government employees from cooperating with federal officials on immigration enforcement actions.
On June 5, Caroline Dias Goncalves, a University of Utah student, was arrested by U.S. immigration officials and taken to an ICE facility in Aurora, Colorado.
Mesa County deputy collected information, shared it with Signal group chat
The situation began when a Mesa County deputy issued Goncalves a warning for following a semi truck too closely. Then, Goncalves was stopped by ICE and taken into their custody.
According to a statement from the Colorado AG’s office, “Deputy Alexander Zwinck violated Colorado law by working with federal immigration officials to detain a 19-year-old Utah woman after a routine traffic stop last month.”
The lawsuit alleges that the deputy “had no right to share, or inquire into, the driver’s personal identifying information for the purpose of assisting with federal civil immigration enforcement. It asks for a court order “enjoining the deputy from engaging in similar unlawful conduct in the future.”
According to the Colorado Attorney General, after Zwinck asked for and received Goncalves driver’s license, registration, and insurance information, “Deputy Zwinck immediately uploaded the driver’s personal identifying information to a group chat on Signal.”
Per the AG, Zwinck knew the group chat included federal immigration officers.
According to the lawsuit, Zwinck had “no right to share, or inquire into, the driver’s personal identifying information for the purpose of assisting with federal civil immigration enforcement.
“Deputy Zwinck immediately uploaded the driver’s personal identifying information to a Signal group chat which Deputy Zwinck knew included federal immigration officers and was told that the driver had no criminal history but was a Brazilian national on an expired visa,” a statement from the AG’s office reads.
Colorado law bars state officers from enforcing immigration law, AG says
After questioning Goncalves about her national origin, her accent, and where she was from, the AG said Zwinck issued a warning. He then returned to the Signal chat and gave immigration officers her information. She was taken into custody by the immigration officers in the group chat shortly later.
State law specifies that Colorado law enforcement officers are dedicated to enforcing Colorado law and do not do the work of the federal government to enforce immigration law,” said Attorney General Weiser. “In this case, the driver was detained by immigration authorities because of actions by Colorado law enforcement despite the absence of any criminal activity on her part. Her detention for over two weeks is directly due to this violation of Colorado’s laws. Because of this action, we are making clear that Colorado law enforcement’s role is to advance public safety, not take on the responsibility of doing the work of federal immigration enforcement.”
The Colorado Attorney General said Zwinck, and all patrol units, were sent an email advising them that Colorado narrowly restricts the ability of sheriff’s offices to enforce immigration issues and cooperate with ICE.
