- Colorado AG Phil Weiser is suing a Colorado sheriff's deputy in the detention of a Utah student by federal immigration officials.
- Zwinck allegedly tipped off federal agents about U. student Caroline Dias Gonclaves, originally from Brazil, after a traffic stop.
- The lawsuit seeks to prevent repeat incidents.
DENVER — Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser is suing the Colorado sheriff's deputy who pulled over a University of Utah student originally from Brazil last month, precipitating her detention by federal immigration authorities.
The civil lawsuit filed Tuesday by Weiser in Mesa County District Court in Grand Junction, Colorado, cites Colorado law limiting the authority of state agencies and employees to cooperate with federal immigration officials.
Mesa County sheriff's deputy Alexander Zwinck allegedly tipped off immigration agents to Caroline Dias Goncalves after pulling her over along I-70 in Mesa County on June 5 for following a semitruck too closely, according to the suit. Immigration officials subsequently detained her, and she was held in a Colorado immigration detention facility for 15 days before her release on June 20.
"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," Weiser said in a statement. "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."
The potential upshot of the new lawsuit is limited. The suit seeks an order from the court declaring that Zwinck's actions violate state law and another order preventing the deputy from violating the state laws in question. Still, it stands as a rebuke to the deputy and his cooperative efforts with federal immigration officials, who have stepped up efforts across the country under President Donald Trump to detain and deport immigrants in the country illegally.
"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," Weiser said. His office said the law Zwinck allegedly violated allows for fines of up to $50,000, while any disciplinary action would come from the Mesa County Sheriff's Office.
The sheriff's office, which had placed Zwinck on administrative leave last month in the wake of the incident to investigate the matter, said the probe continues. It didn't comment on the new lawsuit.
"The Mesa County Sheriff's Office is within one week of completing the administrative investigation into the June 5, 2025, incident involving Ms. Diaz Goncalves. We are committed to transparency in this process and, as such, once the administrative investigation is complete we will provide a formal statement," Molly Casey, the office's public information officer, said in a statement Tuesday.
Dias Goncalves, studying nursing at the University of Utah, didn't immediately respond to a query seeking comment. Now 19, she's originally from Brazil and allegedly overstayed the visa allowing her to enter to the United States more than a decade ago, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
After Dias Goncalves was pulled over along I-70 last month, Zwinck uploaded the driver's license and vehicle registration form she gave him to a Signal chat group that included federal immigration officers, according to the suit. It says he stalled Dias Goncalves while federal authorities conducted a background check, ultimately letting her go with a warning after conveying their location to federal agents.
The federal officials, in the interim, had sent a message to Zwinck via Signal indicating Dias Goncalves' nationality and migratory status that read, "Brazilian national, visa overstay. No crim (sic), no financials or HSI cases."
"Deputy Zwinck eventually released the driver at 1:55 p.m. with the warning, approximately five minutes after providing his and the driver's location to the federal immigration officers. Deputy Zwinck never told the driver that federal immigration officers were en route to their location," the lawsuit says.
After that, Zwinck provided location data "that enabled the federal immigration officers to stop the driver for the purpose of immigration enforcement" and also advised the authorities that Dias Goncalves speaks English. "One minute later, a federal immigration officer informed deputy Zwinck that they stopped the driver's vehicle," according to the suit.
