ICE arrests Honduran fugitive wanted for machete murders of 2 men
RALEIGH, N.C. – A Fugitive Operations Team assigned to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Atlanta field office arrested an at-large fugitive alien Tuesday who is presently wanted for the murder of two men in Honduras.
Francisco Escobar-Orellana, an unlawfully present Honduran national, was arrested by ICE deportation officers Tuesday morning near his Hope Mills residence during a targeted enforcement operation in concert with ICE Homeland Security Investigations special agents.
Mr. Escobar is wanted in Honduras pursuant to a May 2005 arrest warrant for allegedly hacking two men to death with a machete at a liquor store in 1993. Mr. Escobar subsequently unlawfully entered the United States at an unknown time/place.
"ICE is focused on identifying, arresting and removing public safety threats, such as convicted criminal aliens and gang members, as well as individuals who have violated our nation’s immigration laws," said ERO Atlanta Field Office Director Sean Gallagher. “ICE Fugitive Operations Teams conduct targeted enforcement operations toward these identified threats to public safety. North Carolina residents are safer today thanks to the professionalism and hard work of these dedicated officers.”
Mr. Escobar was booked into the Wake County Detention Center Tuesday where he remains in custody. ICE has lodged an immigration detainer against Mr. Escobar and will seek to remove him from the United States to face the criminal charges against him in Honduras.
Members of the public who have information about foreign fugitives are urged to contact ICE by calling the ICE tip line at 1 (866) 347-2423 or internationally at 001-1802-872-6199. They can also file a tip online by completing ICE’s online tip form.
In Fiscal Year 2016, ICE removed or returned 240,255 individuals. Of this total, 174,923 were apprehended while, or shortly after, attempting to illegally enter the United States. The remaining 65,332 were apprehended in the interior of the United States, and the vast majority were convicted criminals. ICE is focused on removing public safety threats, such as convicted criminal aliens and gang members, as well as individuals who have violated our nation’s immigration laws, including those who illegally re-entered the country after being removed and immigration fugitives ordered removed by federal immigration judges.
Updated: