ICE Is Coming After Even Legal Immigrants
Recent policies on illegal immigration are facing increasing scrutiny as they begin to affect legal citizens.
In a number of incidents, U.S. citizens have been detained by ICE agents who failed to properly verify their legal status. Green card holders have also been impacted — pro-Palestine activist Mohsen Mahdawi was detained during a naturalization interview on April 14.
Most recently, 20-year-old legal U.S. resident Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez was detained in what appears to be an error by ICE. Despite presenting evidence of his citizenship, Lopez-Gomez was held for several days.
Closer to home, ICE detained Abel Orozco, a father of two from Lyons, Illinois, in a process called “expedited removal”, despite Orozco having no criminal record. Orozco's wife, who is currently undergoing treatment for breast cancer, and their children have been left behind as Orozco faces the threat of deportation. Orozco’s court hearing is scheduled for this month.
ICE Deports Children Who Are U.S. Citizens
Another outcome of recent immigration policies has been the deportation of U.S. citizen children alongside their undocumented parents.
On April 25, three U.S.-born children (aged two, four, and seven) were deported with their mothers to Honduras, even though they were born in the U.S. The four-year-old child, who requires medication for cancer treatment, was deported without the medication, reports The Washington Outpost
The White House administration defends the deportation of U.S. citizen children along with their parents, saying it wouldn’t be right to leave the children behind.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told NBC News: “If those children are U.S. citizens, they can come back into the United States if their father or someone here who wants to assume them. But ultimately who was deported was their mother — their mothers, who were here illegally. The children just went with their mothers.”
Even though it was implied that the citizen children could stay if the mothers wished, the mothers reportedly weren't given a choice, even though they had requested that the children be given to legal caregivers. Those requests were denied.
USCIS and ICE Thwart Nationwide Marriage Fraud Ring
On a more positive side, USCIS and ICE have taken down a large-scale marriage fraud operation, resulting in multiple arrests and federal indictments.
Dubbed “Operation Bargain Brides”, the investigation was initiated back in April 2022 by ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Maryland's Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force, with support from USCIS and the Department of State Diplomatic Security Service.
The operation uncovered a network facilitating sham marriages between U.S. citizens and foreign nationals who paid for immigration benefits instead of pursuing the actual marriage-based green card process that requires applicants to prove a bona fide marriage.
On April 24, federal authorities arrested 10 individuals involved in the scheme. Additionally, a federal grand jury indicted four primary organizers:
- Ella Zuran (65), Tatiana Sigal (74), and Alexandra Tkach (41) from New York City, who orchestrated the fraudulent marriages.
- Shawnta Hopper (33) from Sicklerville, New Jersey, who recruited U.S. citizens to participate in the sham marriages.
The defendants face up to five years in federal prison if convicted. All individuals charged are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
“Some marriages are made in heaven. Some are just made up”, said USCIS spokesperson Matthew Tragesser.
