ICE lodges detainer against Honduran charged with murder

SAN ANTONIO — ICE San Antonio lodged an immigration detainer against Jose Fredi Rivera-Mejia aka Wilfredo Lopez, 44, a criminal illegal alien from Honduras Aug. 11, who was arrested and charged with murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Rivera-Mejia has been removed from the United States three times previously.

On Aug. 10, at nearly midnight, the San Antonio Police Department was called to a disturbance where Rivera-Mejia produced a handgun and shot multiple victims, then fled the scene with three children. Officers located and arrested him moments later, with the three children, unharmed, in the vehicle. Police charged him with murder and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and arrested him in the early morning of Aug. 11. Additional charges are pending as two other victims remain in critical condition.

“Criminal aliens present in the U.S. pose a significant threat to our public safety and our citizens,” said Enforcement and Removal Operations San Antonio Field Office Director Miguel Vergara. “We will continue to do everything in our power to prevent tragedies like this from occurring and working with our local law enforcement partners so criminals are not released back into our communities.”

Rivera-Mejia was encountered by ICE officers on Nov. 14, 2009, after being arrested in San Antonio for assault. An immigration judge ordered him removed from the U.S. on Jan. 29, 2010. ICE removed him to Honduras Feb. 9, 2010. Rivera-Mejia illegally reentered the U.S. at an unknown date and time and was encountered by ICE officers on Dec. 31, 2012, after being arrested in San Antonio for driving while intoxicated. ICE took custody of Rivera-Mejia, reinstated the removal order, and removed him to Honduras on Jan. 21, 2013. On July 1, 2015, U.S. Border Patrol apprehended Rivera-Mejia close to Eagle Pass, Texas. He admitted to entering the U.S. illegally on June 29, 2015. He was transferred to ICE custody and charged with 8 USC 1325 illegal entry. He was found guilty on July 30, 2015, and removed to Honduras for a third time on Aug. 10, 2015.

Rivera-Mejia most recently entered the U.S. illegally at an unknown date and location.

Members of the public can report suspected violations of U.S. immigration law and other suspicious activity by dialing 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

For more news and information on ICE’s efforts to enforce our nation’s immigration laws in Texas follow us on X at @EROSanAntonio.