A man from Grimes, who occasionally refers to himself as a “foreign ambassador,” was taken into custody on Saturday based on a Dallas County warrant. The warrant is related to an incident in Waukee back in October, where he is accused of assaulting a woman from Coralville.
Caylan Santos Cordaro, a 32-year-old resident of 2301 N.W. County Line Road in Grimes, has been charged with assault.
According to court records, a witness who had a similar recollection of the incident as the victim stated that the victim appeared visually upset and was crying after the alleged assault.
On October 21, a warrant was issued for Cordaro’s arrest in Dallas County District Court. The warrant was then served on November 23. Cordaro was subsequently held in the Dallas County Jail, requiring a $300 cash or surety bond. This detention was in anticipation of his initial appearance in Dallas County District Court.
Cordaro faced arrest in Urbandale earlier on Saturday for driving while barred.
An officer from the Urbandale Police Department conducted a traffic stop just after midnight on Saturday. The reason for the stop was a 2001 Toyota Camry with suspected fraudulent ‘Diplomat’ license plates. The driver, Cordaro, initially identified himself as a ‘Foreign Ambassador,’ according to court records.
According to court records, Cordaro handed the officer an envelope containing various documents and a sticky note labeled as “Rights to Travel.” Although he provided his name, he declined to disclose his date of birth, explaining that it was proprietary information that he couldn’t share.
According to court records, Cordaro informed the officer that he did not possess a valid driver’s license from any U.S. state. He explained that only citizens are permitted to have such licenses, and since he is not a citizen but a national, he did not have one.
Cordaro spent some time in the Polk County Jail before being released on a pretrial release agreement. He is set to appear for his arraignment on January 8th in Polk County District Court.
In 2013, Cordaro was found guilty of theft in Polk County District Court. Two years later, he was arrested in Des Moines for assault causing bodily injury or mental illness, but the charge was eventually dropped in the same district court. However, in August 2024, Cordaro faced another conviction for interfering with official acts.
This incident occurred when an Iowa State Patrol Trooper pulled him over for speeding in June. According to court records, Cordaro refused to provide identification for an extended period, insisting that he was a private citizen traveling under common law. Additionally, his vehicle had a paper obstructing the vehicle identification number, which stated “Traveling under Common Law.”
Cordaro’s request for a public defender in Polk County District Court raises concerns about his alignment with the sovereign-citizen ideology. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, sovereign citizens are individuals who identify as “anti-government extremists” and believe that they exist separately or are “sovereign” from the United States, despite physically residing within the country.
“A criminal charge is simply an accusation, and it is important to remember that the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.”