Two U.S. Border Patrol agents were assaulted by a man suspected of  human smuggling.

The incident occurred at about 1:17 a.m. Tuesday when agents on Interstate 8 near Kitchen Creek Road stopped a pickup truck. The driver of the pickup pulled over , but as agents gave verbal commands , took off at a high rate of speed westbound towards Pine Valley. Agents successfully deployed a tire deflation device but the driver continued on I-8 before exiting on Sunrise Highway and stopping. The driver then fled on foot but was discovered hiding behind a bush. The suspect jumped out and attacked a Border Patrol agent wrestling him to the ground. Another agent arrived and a struggle continued before the man was subdued. Inside the pickup truck were three men and a woman , all from Mexico and in this country illegally. The driver , a 37-year old U.S. citizen was arrested and will be charged with alien smuggling and assault on a Federal officer. The driver and the two agents sustained cuts and bruises but required no immediate medical attention.