I.C.E. News Releases


08/02/2019

WASHINGTON, DC

ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL

Wanted murderer removed to El Salvador
On May 10, ERO officers with the Washington field office arrested Angel in Alexandria, Virginia and served him a notice to appear in immigration court. An immigration judge ordered Angel removed to El Salvador July 9.



08/02/2019

WASHINGTON, DC



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE removes convicted Iranian illegal arms dealer
Arash Sepehri departed the U.S. from Washington Dulles Airport escorted by ERO officers and transited through John F. Kennedy Airport in New York and Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Baku, Azerbaijan. Sepehri arrived at the Imam Khomeini Airport in Tehran on July 30.



08/01/2019

CHICAGO, IL



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE deportation officers in Chicago remove Salvadoran wanted on terrorism charges in his home country
Pedro Juan Cruz-Cortez, 23, was flown to El Salvador July 31 on a charter flight coordinated by ICE Air Operations (IAO). Upon arrival, ERO officers transferred Cruz-Cortez to officials from El Salvador’s Civilian National Police.



08/01/2019

DETROIT, MI



HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING


Nearly 3-year manhunt ends in arrest of HSI most wanted fugitive
Darrick Bell, 50, aka Tone or Ghost, a U.S. citizen, was the subject of a nearly three-year manhunt, following the takedown of a large-scale human trafficking operation at the now-demolished Victory Inn Motel in Detroit.




07/31/2019

WASHINGTON, DC



INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND COMMERCIAL FRAUD


ICE HSI Global Trade Investigations Division partners with Liberty Shared to combat forced labor
HSI’s forced labor programs coordinate and initiate criminal investigations into U.S.-bound supply chains whose goods are made wholly or in part by means of forced labor.



07/31/2019

LOS ANGELES, CA



INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND COMMERCIAL FRAUD


ICE HSI investigation leads to federal indictment alleging scheme to avoid payment of $1.8 billion in anti-dumping duties on Chinese aluminum imported as 'pallets'
The 53-page indictment alleges that China Zhongwang Holdings Limited, Asia’s largest aluminum extrusion company; Zhongtian Liu, the company’s former president and chairman; and several individual and corporate co-defendants lied to U.S. Customs and Border Protection to avoid paying the United States $1.8 billion in anti-dumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD) that were imposed in 2011 on certain types of extruded aluminum imported into the United States from China.



07/29/2019

SAN SALVADOR,EL SALVADOR



CHILD EXPLOITATION


ICE HSI special agents and victim assistance specialists lead human trafficking and child exploitation trainings for Latin American and Caribbean law enforcement authorities
The trainings, which took place between June 17-21 and June 24-28, 2019, were designed to help participating law enforcement officers, agents, prosecutors, and judges understand the crimes of sex trafficking/forced labor and child exploitation/sexual child abuse and how to work these types of cases. The ICE HSI delegations not only provided insight into each crime, but also discussed the challenges they face when investigating and prosecuting human trafficking and child exploitation cases in the United States.



07/26/2019

CHICAGO, IL



DOCUMENT AND BENEFIT FRAUD


Chinese businesswoman indicted on student-visa, work-visa fraud charges
Weiyun Huang, also known as “Kelly Huang,” 30, of Beijing, China, is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud and five counts of visa fraud, according to an indictment returned July 25 in U.S. District Court in Chicago.




07/26/2019

SAN FRANCISCO, CA



INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND COMMERCIAL FRAUD


ICE HSI San Francisco intercepted counterfeit products attempting to penetrate the Bay Area consumer market
This surge initiative in the Bay Area is in furtherance of an HSI-led National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) strategy for targeting the importation, smuggling, and trafficking of counterfeit goods. The goal of this operation is to identify and interdict counterfeit products entering the US at International Mail Facilities and Express Consignment Hubs, and then for HSI field offices to initiate investigations to disrupt and dismantle those organizations involved in these criminal acts.



07/26/2019

SACRAMENTO, CA



DOCUMENT AND BENEFIT FRAUD


2 California DMV employees convicted of bribery, identity fraud, unauthorized computer usage
Kari Scattaglia, 40, of Sylmar, and another former DMV employee co-defendant Lisa Terraciano, 52, of North Hollywood, pleaded guilty, Nov. 3, 2017, to a conspiracy to commit bribery, to commit identity fraud, and to commit unauthorized access of a computer.



07/25/2019

WASHINGTON, DC



STATEMENT


Acting ICE director testifies on Hill about agency budget needs
The acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director testified Thursday afternoon before the House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Homeland Security, at a hearing titled, “ICE Oversight Hearing.” In his testimony, Acting ICE Director Matthew T. Albence highlighted the humanitarian crisis at the southwest border and the necessary resources and funding needed for the agency fulfill its mission.



07/25/2019

SAN FRANCISCO, CA



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


Salvadoran gangster removed to his home county to face charges for gang violence, murder
Cortez-Moreno, 30, is wanted by the Salvadoran government for multiple egregious crimes, including charges of manslaughter, murder and other crimes with ties to 18th Street Gang activity.




07/25/2019

BOSTON, MA



HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING


ICE HSI Boston case brings conviction, possible 15 years-to-life sentence, for Massachusetts sex trafficker
Reginald Abraham, 51, was convicted in Boston of four counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion. Abraham, who was arrested, charged and has been held in federal custody since September 2017, will remain in custody until his sentencing in November.


07/25/2019

CHICAGO, IL



NARCOTICS


Former Chicago resident sentenced to 5 years in federal prison for laundering drug cartel money
Mario Herrera, 55, from Michoacán, Mexico, and formerly of Chicago, was a member of a Mexico-based conspiracy that laundered more than $100 million in narcotics proceeds on behalf of the Jalisco New Generation and Sinaloa drug cartels.



07/25/2019

CHICAGO, IL



DOCUMENT AND BENEFIT FRAUD


Chicago 'con man' sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for defrauding more than 200 aliens
James Keegan, 57, of Cicero, Illinois, fraudulently offered immigration advocacy services, including guaranteed U.S. permanent resident status, in exchange for a fluctuating fee that averaged $3,000 per applicant.



07/25/2019

ATLANTA, GA



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE detainee passes away at Georgia hospital
Consistent with the agency’s protocols, the appropriate agencies have been notified about the death, including the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General, and the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility.




07/24/2019

YUMA, AZ



NARCOTICS


ICE HSI Yuma seizes more than $4 million in narcotics
On Thursday, July 18, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Yuma special agents arrested Alejandro Escobar-Rivera, 51, and seized 221.22 lbs. of methamphetamine and 5.0 lbs. of cocaine with a combined approximate street value of nearly $4.1 million, as well as multiple cell phones, in a targeted enforcement action led by HSI.



07/24/2019

PHILADELPHIA, PA



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE removes Turkish man convicted in a scheme to violate US economic sanctions on Iran
On May 16, 2018, Mehmet Hakan Atilla, 48, was sentenced to 32 months in prison for his participation in a scheme to violate U.S. economic sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic of Iran involving billions of dollars in Iranian oil proceeds held at Atilla’s employer (“Turkish Bank-1”).



07/24/2019

WASHINGTON, DC



OPERATIONAL


ICE HSI personnel recognized by ONDCP during annual US Interdiction Coordinator Award Ceremony
The National Bulk Cash Smuggling Center (BCSC) was recognized for its efforts in identifying and combatting transnational criminal organizations’ (TCO) use of illicit value, including bulk cash, stored value and cryptocurrency.



07/22/2019

NEWARK, NJ



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


Mexican national in US illegally is charged with causing child's death while driving without a license
Jorge Rodriguez-Saldana, 30, was driving a vehicle that struck a grandmother and her two grandchildren, killing the seven-year-old child and critically injuring the grandmother.




07/22/2019

POCATELLO, ID



CHILD EXPLOITATION


Rigby woman sentenced to 15 years in prison for possessing sexually explicit images of minors
Elizabeth Dawn Evans, 28, of Rigby, Idaho, was sentenced last Friday in U.S. District Court to 15 years in prison for possessing sexually explicit images of minors.



07/19/2019

NEW YORK, NY



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE removes Spanish national wanted for narcotics charges
ICE's ERO removed Martha Valencia-Gutierrez, 50, a Spanish national, wanted in her home country on narcotics trafficking charges.



07/18/2019

SAN JUAN, <acronym title="Google Page Ranking">PR</acronym>



CONTRABAND


Operation 'Kosovo' nets 11 arrests for drug trafficking, firearms violations
The indictment alleges that between on-or-about May 2018 and November 2018, the organization distributed cocaine, crack, heroin, and marijuana, all within the real property comprising the Villa Evangelina Public Housing Project located in the Municipality of Manatí.



07/18/2019

MCALLEN, TX



NARCOTICS


Former South Texas police officer sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for cocaine trafficking
Geovani Hernandez, 45, a former South Texas police officer from Weslaco, Texas, was sentenced on Thursday to 20 years in federal prison following his cocaine-trafficking conviction in March.

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