MS-13 Gang Members, Al-Qaeda Terrorist Found Living Illegally in US

From The Epoch Times.com (Feb. 6):

Members of the notorious MS-13 gang, as well as several terrorists, including one linked to al-Qaeda and another to Tren de Aragua, Venezuela’s largest criminal organization, have recently been arrested by immigration officials in U.S. cities, including Baltimore, Philadelphia, Minneapolis, and Chicago.

According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) records, they were all living in the United States illegally and were released by detention centers under the Biden administration despite previous convictions for violent crimes, including murder.

The latest arrest occurred just last week, involving an MS-13 gang member from El Salvador who had been convicted in 2023 of being an accessory after the fact in a first-degree murder case and was sentenced to five years in prison.

According to Darius Reeves, acting field director of ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in Baltimore, a Montgomery County Circuit Court judge suspended most of his sentence, ignored an immigration detainer issued against the Salvadoran national, and instead ordered his release into the general public.

“This unlawfully present Salvadoran gang member’s presence in the United States represents a threat to the safety and security of our residents,” Mr. Reeves stated. “Not only is he a validated member of a notorious criminal enterprise, but he also aided other criminals in the commission of a murder. ERO Baltimore will continue to apprehend and remove such criminal elements from our Maryland communities.”

An ICE spokesman told The Epoch Times that the name of the 30-year-old MS-13 gang member, who initially entered the United States illegally near Falfurrias, Texas, is being withheld pending a removal order, as mandated by federal law.

Two days after the MS-13 gang member’s arrest, Patrick Lechleitner, President Biden’s acting ICE director, admitted that last year, a Somali terrorist from the Islamic military group al-Shabaab was accidentally released after being found living illegally in the United States. He had been freely roaming until his re-arrest on Jan. 20 in Minneapolis.

According to the National Counterterrorism Center, al-Shabaab has killed more U.S. citizens than any other al-Qaeda affiliate. It reportedly has between 7,000 and 10,000 members, according to the federal agency. The group lists its main targets as U.S. military forces and is known to attack civilian targets such as hotels, shopping malls, universities, and busy intersections.

Members of other foreign terrorist organizations have also been discovered living illegally in the United States recently. Last month, a man from Bangladesh, convicted of attempting to provide material support to an unnamed foreign terrorist organization, was deported. He had been found living in the United States illegally more than eight years ago.

According to ICE records, Rakin Islam Chowdhury was granted temporary permission to remain in the United States on June 5, 2015. This authorization expired on Dec. 4, 2015.

Recent reports from Chicago have highlighted the presence of dangerous illegal immigrants in the United States, where law enforcement has allegedly discovered a cell operated by Tren de Aragua. This gang, known in English as the Aragua Train, is considered the largest criminal organization in Venezuela and is primarily engaged in sex trafficking.

Telemundo Chicago Investiga wrote in a Jan. 22, 2024, article that it had obtained communications between Willow Springs, Illinois, police chief Garry McCarthy and the Cook County Sheriff’s Department in Los Angeles, California, showing growing concerns about gang operations in their communities.

Neither Mr. McCarthy nor the Cook County Sheriff’s Police Department responded to multiple inquiries from The Epoch Times. A Telemundo report featured an email sent by the Cook County Sheriff.

“I wanted to give you a heads-up about a new threat developing among the newly arriving immigrant community,” the email stated. “There is a gang from Venezuela known as Tren de Aragua. This gang has strong human trafficking operations in Latin America and is likely engaged in sex and labor trafficking in the United States. Multiple agencies have confirmed their presence in the United States.”

The email includes a redacted source that claims to have “information that the gang is here in Chicago.” [read more]

One of the got-aways of course. Have to close the border until the problem is taken care of. Letting these gang members and terrorists roam free is asking for trouble ie migrant crime. It's not only stupid but dangerous too.