The United States has 406 fewer foreign fugitives on the loose thanks to the work of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) National Fugitive Operations Program (NFOP) team members. The number of foreign fugitives they have arrested has increased from 74 in fiscal year 2011 to 406 in fiscal year 2016. Working together with domestic and international law enforcement partners, including the team at ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) has proven to be a recipe for success.
Carrying that success into the new fiscal year, ICE ERO officers working out of the agency’s New York City field office received information from HSI Bogotá special agents that Anthony Bhupdeo, a Guyanese national was wanted in Guyana for murder and was the subject of an Interpol red notice. The Fugitive Operations team in New York City arrested Bhupdeo on October 5, and he is awaiting his hearing in front of an immigration judge.
The ERO National Fugitive Operations Program, originally established in 2003, prioritizes its efforts on removable aliens who are national security and public safety threats, including transnational gang members, convicted criminals, sex offenders, and foreign fugitives wanted for crimes committed abroad.
ERO officers assigned to Interpol’s Washington, DC office, for example, work alongside officers, attorneys and analysts from other DHS components, the Department of Justice and the Department of State on a daily basis. Together, they work to confirm identities and criminal warrants with foreign countries and HSI abroad, provide fugitive lead referrals to officers and agents in the field, provide assistance in obtaining travel documents, and coordinate with Justice and State on extradition matters.
Interpol uses a color-coded system of notices and alerts, as well as an advanced, secure communications network to share intelligence and analysis, informing the 190 member nations of a variety of potential threats. The most well-known of these are the organization’s red notices, which have been described as the closest thing to an international arrest warrant in use today.
Among those located and arrested by ERO and its Fugitive Operations Teams this year were the following individuals, all of whom are or were the subject of Interpol red notices;
Emilio Eliseo Coreas-Avelar, 24, of El Salvador, was arrested June 22 in Burke, Virginia, the subject of an Interpol red notice from El Salvador for aggravated homicide and gang participation.
Salomon Eusebio Rosario, 42, of Dominican Republic, was arrested February 11 in Brooklyn, New York. Rosario was, at the time, wanted in the Dominican Republic for homicide.
Zi Ming Zhou, 45, of China, was arrested February 11 in East Brunswick, New Jersey, wanted in China for bank fraud.
Inmer Obed Palma-Garcia, 28, of El Salvador, was arrested July 16 in Waxahachie, Texas, the subject of an Interpol red notice from El Salvador for aggravated homicide.
Jonathan Josue Lopez-Rivera, 25, of Honduras, was arrested July 21 in Glendale, California, wanted in his home country for homicide.
Aleksey Boytsov, 42, and Igor Borbot, 41, of Russia, were arrested April 22 in California and New York City, respectively. Both are wanted in Russia for large scale fraud, money laundering, and organized crime.
The ICE National Criminal Analysis and Targeting Center (NCATC) provides critical investigative support for daily arrest efforts, including criminal and intelligence analysis from a variety of sources. The NCATC provides comprehensive analytical support to aid the at-large enforcement efforts of all ICE components.
While those are but a small sample of the more than 400 foreign fugitives arrested by ERO in FY 2016, they reflect not only the global scope of NFOP’s mission, but also the broad range of dangerous criminals on the run and possibly hiding here in the United States. Because of this, ICE continues seeking the general public’s help in sharing any information they might have regarding criminal fugitives at large in the United States, including Juan Chicas-Ramos, a citizen of El Salvador wanted there for murder, and who is currently the subject of an Interpol red notice and one of ICE’s Top Ten most wanted.
Effective public outreach and community engagement not only contributes to strengthening the overall security of our cities and towns, but also fosters greater trust and collaboration among a general public that often finds itself the victim of additional crimes perpetrated by those already wanted, or convicted, by our partner nations.
Members of the public who have information about these fugitives are urged to contact ICE by calling the toll-free ICE tip line at 1-866-347-2423 or internationally at 001-1802-872-6199, or by completing an online tip form.