ICE Houston deports Salvadoran man wanted for homicide
HOUSTON — A fugitive Salvadoran man wanted for aggravated homicide was deported Friday by officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).
This removal is the latest result of stepped-up collaborative efforts to locate Salvadoran criminal fugitives in the United States and return them to El Salvador to face justice.
Juan Ramon Gonzalez-Hernandez, 22, was flown to El Salvador March 18 and turned over to Salvadoran officials.
“Removing known gang members and foreign fugitives from the United States is an ICE priority,” said Patrick D. Contreras, field office director of ERO Houston. “The cooperation between the United States and El Salvador governments resulted in this foreign fugitive being safely returned to his home country where he will stand trial for his alleged crimes.”
ERO Houston was notified that Gonzalez was wanted for aggravated homicide in El Salvador. He was located and arrested at his Houston residence May 29.
This removal was part of ERO’s Security Alliance for Fugitive Enforcement (SAFE) Initiative. The SAFE Initiative is geared toward the identification of foreign fugitives who are wanted abroad and removable under U.S. immigration law.
In just four years, through the SAFE Initiative, ERO has removed more than 630 criminal fugitives to El Salvador. Those removed as part of the SAFE Initiative have been deemed ineligible to remain in the United States and were all wanted by El Salvador’s PNC.
SAFE aligns with ERO’s public safety priorities and eliminates the need for formal extradition requests.
Since Oct. 1, 2009, ERO has removed more than 1,150 foreign fugitives from the United States who were sought in their native countries for serious crimes, including kidnapping, rape and murder. ERO works with the ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Office of International Operations, foreign consular offices in the United States, and Interpol to identify foreign fugitives illegally present in the United States. Members of the public who have information about foreign 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. They can also file a tip online by completing ICE’s online tip form.
ERO coordinates the removal of criminals, foreign fugitives and others ordered deported. Last year alone, ERO removed 315,943 individuals from the United States. ICE is focused on smart and effective immigration enforcement that prioritizes its resources based on those who pose the biggest threat to national security, border security and public safety. ICE’s civil enforcement efforts are based on priorities set by the Secretary of Homeland Security in November 2014.
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