A immigration agent who bragged to colleagues about his marksmanship after shooting a Chicago woman accused of ramming his vehicle sent other text messages that are now in the hands of defense attorneys, marking yet another twist in a controversial case arising from Operation Midway Blitz.

The new messages, which so far have not been revealed publicly, were ordered turned over to lawyers for Marimar Martinez this week by U.S. District Judge Georgia Alexakis, who viewed them in her chambers to determine their relevance, court records show.

The content of the those recently uncovered texts will be among several topics of discussion at a status hearing Thursday for Martinez, who is accused of assaulting federal agents with her vehicle during an immigration enforcement mission Oct. 4.

Prosecutors have said Martinez was part of a convoy of civilians who were following agents when she rammed Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum’s vehicle near 39th Street and Kedzie Avenue, prompting Exum to jump out of his Chevrolet Tahoe and fire five shots, wounding Martinez seven times.

Martinez’s attorneys, meanwhile, argue it was Exum who sideswiped Martinez and that his extreme use of force was completely unjustified. They’ve also alleged evidence tampering, saying Exum was inexplicably allowed to drive the Tahoe more than 1,000 miles back to his home base in Maine, where a Border Patrol mechanic attempted to “wipe off” some of the scuff marks from the crash.

An upcoming evidentiary hearing could feature several witnesses who will testify about the decision to release the vehicle, including Exum’s direct supervisor, the FBI agent who helped process it, and a federal prosecutor working early stages of the case.

This follows a bombshell hearing earlier this month where it was revealed that after the shooting, as news of the incident was making national headlines, Exum texted a group of other agents that he was “up for another round of “f––– around and find out.”

Exum, a 23-year veteran of Border Patrol, also texted the group a link to a news article about the shooting and said, “Read it … I fired 5 shots and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys,” according to court records.

In his court testimony Nov. 5, Exum, who is based in Maine, described the circle of fellow agents he chatted with as a sort of support group for “relieving stress.”

“And what did you mean by ‘Read it. 5 shots?’” asked defense attorney Christopher Parente. “Why are you pointing that fact out?”

“I’m a firearms instructor,” Exum answered. “And I take pride in my shooting skills.”

“You take pride in your shooting skills?” Parente clarified.

“That is correct,” Exum said.

Martinez, 30, has pleaded not guilty to a single count of using a dangerous weapon to interfere with federal officers in the course of their official duties. Also charged with the same crime was Anthony Ian Santos Ruiz, 21, who prosecutors say used his SUV to ram the same Border Patrol vehicle. Ruiz also has entered a not guilty plea.

A trial has been set for Feb. 2.

Prosecutors have said Martinez and Ruiz were both in a convoy of cars following agents and that Martinez had been broadcasting the pursuit on Facebook Live, “laying on her horn” and “yelling loudly” at the agents.

After the crash and shooting, Martinez drove off, but paramedics discovered her and her vehicle at a repair shop about a mile away, according to a criminal complaint. She was later taken by ambulance to a local hospital, where she was released after being treated for multiple gunshot wounds.

Ruiz also drove away after the collisions, but law enforcement located him and his vehicle at a gas station about half a block away, the complaint stated.

All three agents were equipped with body cameras, but the camera of only one of the passengers was switched on at the time of the incident, according to the complaint.

The body camera footage has not been released publicly. But Parente said in court he’d viewed it multiple times and that it showed just before the shooting, one of the agents who was a passenger — not Exum — was captured saying, “Do something, bitch,” while his hands were on his assault rifle.

Prosecutors have alleged in court that the actions of both Martinez and Ruiz were “extremely dangerous and extremely reckless,” putting both the officers and potentially innocent bystanders in harm’s way.

In his court testimony this month, Exum defended his actions as within department policy, saying an “offensive vehicle-to-vehicle confrontation with a federal agent typically does not happen in the United States.”

“This incident is so unlike anything that we have trained for, this would almost equate to our counter vehicle assault training, which typically takes place out of country, in cartel controlled areas of Mexico, or combat situations,” Exum testified.

Exum did, however, clarify that what Martinez allegedly did was not a “ramming” in his mind, since it was more of a sideswipe collision.

“Ram to me is more of a head-on maneuver,” Exum said .”So this was side to side. So I would describe it more of, I guess you’d say hit and not rammed.”

Exum was later asked to explain his text to his agent buddies about being ready for “another round of ‘F––– around and find out,’” which was sent just a day after he’d shot Martinez.

Exum said the text meant that “illegal actions have legal consequences.”

“And you’re up for it?” Parente asked.

“That’s my job,” Exum said.

“Your job is to shoot people?” Parente asked.

“No, sir,” Exum responded.

On Thursday, Alexakis is expected to decide on what evidence and testimony will be heard at an upcoming hearing over what happened with Exum’s Tahoe, which the judge had ordered brought back to Chicago on a flatbed truck.

According to prosecutors, the Tahoe remained at the scene of the shooting for several hours as an FBI technician took photographs of the vehicle’s exterior. An FBI special agent then drove the Tahoe to the agency’s Chicago headquarters for processing, where the evidence technician inspected it, took additional photographs “and collected paint samples from the damaged areas,” the filing stated.

The contents of the vehicle’s onboard computer were also downloaded and preserved.

After the processing was completed later that night, Exum was authorized to remove it from the FBI offices, according to the filing. Three days later, the agent drove it downtown to the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse to participate in an interview with prosecutors in the U.S. attorney’s office. After that, his monthlong deployment to Chicago ended and he “began the two-and-a-half-day drive back to his station in Maine” in the Tahoe, according to the filing.

Exum told prosecutors he did not “wash, repair, or alter” the vehicle before arriving at his station in Maine on Oct. 10, according to the filing. The agent’s ranking supervisor then authorized its repair, “understanding that the vehicle had been fully processed by the FBI and that, therefore, there was no further need to preserve the vehicle’s condition as evidence,” the filing stated.

Oct. 14, a Border Patrol mechanic “began to work on the car to put it back into service,” using a brake cleaner on a shop rag to attempt to “wipe the scuff marks,” but used only light pressure and “did not repair any of scratches or dents on the vehicle,” the filing stated.

After receiving word from Chicago about the dispute over the car’s whereabouts, the supervisor at the Maine station ordered that the Tahoe not be serviced any further, the filing stated. On Oct. 23, the vehicle was picked up and transported by flatbed truck to Chicago, where it was inspected by Martinez’s attorneys at the FBI’s Chicago office.

At the hearing Nov. 4, Alexakis said it gave her “great pause” that Exum’s vehicle was treated so differently from the cars driven by Martinez and Ruiz, which have remained in the custody and control of the FBI at all times. She also noted the government’s “story has changed in small ways.”

“And it is entirely possible that none of these differences really matter at the end of the day,” Alexakis said. “But the fact that these discrepancies are popping up cause me to question the narrative that has been put forward and lead me to the conclusion that the only way to get to the bottom of the situation is through a hearing.”

jmeisner@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/20/more-texts-uncovered-agent-woman-shot/