News Releases and Statements

Samuel Benjamin Hernandez-Santacruz, 26, was flown to El Salvador March 21 onboard a charter flight coordinated by ICE’s Air Operations (IAO) Unit. Upon arrival, Hernandez was turned over to officials from El Salvador’s Civilian National Police (PNC).

Stefania Joaquina Campos Rezende, a 39-year-old citizen of Brazil, was arrested Feb. 14 by a Fugitive Operations Team assigned to ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) office in Baltimore. She was identified as a fugitive alien after an immigration judge issued her a final order of removal in 2006. She arrived at Belo Horizonte International Airport in Brazil yesterday and was turned over to local authorities to serve the sentence in her human trafficking conviction.

ICE officers in the ERO Philadelphia field office helped prevent a murder suspect from fleeing the country one day and helped apprehend a fleeing suspect the next day earlier this month.

ERO’s Washington, D.C.-based Fugitive Operations Team arrested Henry Parada-Orellana, 26, Sept. 1, 2015, at the 6000 block of Springfield Mall Drive in Springfield, Virginia. Upon his arrest, ERO deportation officers charged Parada-Orellana with felony re-entry charges since he was a previously removed alien.

In the course of normal targeted enforcement activities, ERO officers apprehended eight individuals with past criminal convictions ranging from sexual abuse to attempted rape.  Each was taken into custody and is currently being detained pending the completion of removal proceedings.

Consistent with agency protocols, the appropriate state health and local law enforcement agencies have been advised of the death, as have the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General and the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility. 

A total of 248 foreign nationals were arrested over the last two weeks in the states of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Delaware during a targeted enforcement operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) aimed at criminal aliens, immigration fugitives, re-entrants and other immigration violators.

Of those arrested during the enforcement action, which concluded Friday, 55 had criminal histories, including prior convictions for sex crimes, drug offenses, and domestic violence.

Jose Mercedes Meza-Ignacio, 52, a citizen of Mexico residing in Atlanta, was arrested at his residence March 9 as a result of an active child molestation arrest warrant by the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office.

ICE filed the detainer on July 12, 2016, on Denner Dos Santos, 22, a Brazilian national, soon after Burlington County released him from custody.

Anderson Hickman, 33, was lawfully admitted to the U.S. in November 2015 on a temporary visa, which was later revoked.

Hector Suarez, 44, was released from local custody Dec. 30, after being arraigned in New York County Criminal Court and released on bail. ICE filed the detainer with Manhattan Central Booking Dec. 29.

Kelbin Perez De Los Santos, 35, wanted by the Dominican authorities for homicide, was taken into ICE custody on Tuesday.  Perez De Los Santos allegedly shot and killed a victim during a dispute in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and fled to New Jersey in 2016.

According to court documents, Delroy Anthony McLean, 42, threatened to “bash the head” of a federal immigration judge and also threatened the life of the judge’s husband during court proceedings. McLean was convicted of threatening a federal official after a jury trial Oct. 4-5 in Columbus.

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.

Servando Camacho-Velazquez (aka El Baron), 47, was transferred to the custody of representatives from Mexico’s Procuraduria General de la Republica (PGR) and Mexican immigration officials by ERO officers at the DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales.

ERO officers arrested Marques Velasquez  Feb. 16 in Queens, New York, pursuant to a final order of removal. He has been processed and is now in ERO detention pending removal.

Sebastian Medina-Cuabras, aka Carlos Lopez-Barraza, 39,was transferred to the custody of representatives from Mexico's Procuraduria General de la Republica (PGR) and Mexican immigration officials by ERO officers at the Nogales (Arizona) DeConcini Port of Entry.

Martires Molvan-Figeureo, 54, was escorted by ERO officers via an ICE Air Ops charter flight to Louisiana, where he then boarded a flight to the Dominican Republic, where he was turned over to local authorities.  He entered the United States legally, but failed to depart the U.S. as required.

Javier Atlixqueno-Vaquero, 37, a citizen of Mexico, was arrested late Tuesday night after ERO identified Vaquero leaving his residence. Atlixqueno is a convicted felon for the crimes of sexual assault with a minor, felony sale of hallucinogen/narcotic controlled substance, and felony failure to appear.

Luis Alejandro Villegas, 31, was released from local custody Dec. 31, 2016, after being detained for driving while intoxicated. Villegas has a previous criminal conviction for robbery in the first degree, forcible theft with a deadly weapon for which he served five years’ imprisonment.  Following his prison term, Villegas was removed from the United States in 2007 pursuant to a final order of removal.

All 16 arrested during this operation had been convicted of crimes in the United States and fall within ICE’s enforcement priorities. Their convictions include the following crimes: force/assault with a deadly weapon not firearm — gross bodily injury likely, receiving stolen property, battery, grand theft (auto), drug possession with intent to distribute, and drunk driving. Two were previously deported and two have outstanding deportation orders.

Tayabi Fazal Hussain, 59, was convicted in June 2016, for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana. He was charged with conspiracy to export sensitive U.S. technologies, including air filters, optical lenses, telescope equipment, mobile generators and mold detectors to Iran, without the requisite license from the U.S. Department of Commerce.