U.S. Marshals Arrest Fugitive on Florida Warrant for Sexual Battery on a Minor

David G. Jolley, United States Marshal for the Eastern District of Tennessee, announces the arrest of Eleazar Briones-Vega for Capital Sexual Battery on a Minor. Briones-Vega was wanted out of Sarasota County, Florida by the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.

On the morning of August 28, 2025, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) Greeneville office received information from the USMS Florida/Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force out of Tampa that Briones-Vega might be in upper East Tennessee. Eastern Tennessee USMS Smoky Mountains Task Force (SMFTF) members went to work on the information and were able to locate Briones-Vega in White Pine, TN and placed him under arrest without incident.

Per information from the Florida investigation, Briones-Vega began committing sexual acts on the minor victim when the victim was under ten years of age and the sexual acts continued for approximately three years until reported and Briones-Vega fled the state of Florida.

Briones-Vega was booked into the Jefferson County (TN) Detention Center to await extradition to Florida. Briones-Vega is from Mexico and not legally in the U.S.

U.S. Marshal Jolley stated, “I appreciate the quick work of our Smoky Mountains Fugitive Task Force to locate and apprehend this child predator. Such individuals are not welcome in our state nor our country.”

The Eastern District of Tennessee United States Marshals Service (USMS) Smoky Mountains Fugitive Task Force team that made the arrests included Deputy U.S. Marshals out of the Greeneville, TN office and SMFTF officers from the White Pine Police Department, Morristown Police Department, Hamblen County Sheriff’s Office, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Greenville Police Department, and the Jefferson City Police Department.