News Releases and Statements

Because sanctuary policies restrict ICE’s access to local databases, pushing ICE agents out of jails and the associated political pressure discouraging local law enforcement from effectively communicating with federal immigration officials, ICE is often unaware of a criminal alien being in custody prior to them being released. These misguided policies hinder ICE’s ability to lodge immigration detainers in a timely manner.

Manual Lozano, 33, from Corpus Christi and member of the Sureno 13 gang was sentenced Thursday to nearly 11 years in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and carrying a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.

Eben Roberts, acting special agent in charge of HSI Seattle and William D. Hyslop, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Ryan Wade Alexander, age 34, of Richland, Washington, was sentenced after having pleaded guilty to production and distribution of child pornography.

The recent arrest of convicted child molester and repeat immigration offender, Juan Ramon Avila-Leon, is a testament to why cooperative law enforcement is critical to public safety.

The workshop, which took place between Sept. 26-27, was designed to help attendees leverage established procedures by various private sector participants to facilitate the timely exchange of information with Spanish-speaking law enforcement agencies worldwide in anti-financial crimes.

Eduardo Pineda, 26, from Tyler, Texas, pleaded guilty July 25, 2019, to manufacturing and possessing with intent to manufacture and distribute marijuana; he was sentenced Nov. 12 to 108 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle.

A five-count indictment returned Wednesday by a federal grand jury in Riverside charges Hatim Humeed Alsufyani, 36, and Mosab Alzahrani, 27, both formerly of San Bernardino, with one count of conspiracy to smuggle goods out of the United States without obtaining export licenses.

The criminal complaint accuses Rodymar Pedrano Lelis, 29, of accessing videos containing child pornography from his room in a local hotel Sept. 7, 2019. HSI special agents arrested Lelis in Española.

Jeremy David Medbery, 34, of Riverside, California, faces a minimum mandatory five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least four years of supervised release.

The four properties were identified as part of an international criminal investigation that lasted several years. In March 2019, Qifeng Li, 41, Xiamin Huang, 39 and Qiwei Li, 45, pleaded guilty and admitted that they used money from conspirators in the Peoples Republic of China to purchase homes in the Puget Sound area.

Reuben Rankin, 34, was charged with one count of assault on a federal officer with a deadly weapon, one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of use of a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.

Steve Torres, 43, and Uriel Delgado, 37, both of Las Vegas, were sentenced Friday for selling large quantities of methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich for the District of Nevada announced.

The indictment alleges that the defendants exploited the EB-2(a) visa program by submitting bogus alien worker petitions on behalf of companies – some legitimate, some created specifically for the scheme – that purportedly wanted to hire foreign nationals after exhausting attempts to find suitable workers in the United States.

Cristian Alvarado Morales, 30, and Anderson Garces Lopez, 29, both of Tulsa, pleaded guilty Monday to selling fraudulent social security and U.S. permanent resident cards to individuals unlawfully living in the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.

In the course of Operation SOAR, ERO deportation officers apprehended 23 individuals with past criminal convictions ranging from sexual abuse to rape. Several of those arrested are registered sexual offenders. Each taken into custody is currently being detained pending the completion of removal proceedings, criminal prosecution, or removal from the United States.

Moises De Jesus Ruiz-Mejia, 25, was flown to El Salvador Oct. 29 on a commercial flight. Upon arrival, ERO officers transferred Cruz-Cortez to officials from El Salvador’s Civilian National Police (PNC).