29-07-2025
Illegal migrant from Jamaica gets job as POLICE OFFICER in sleepy Maine town
An illegal migrant from Jamaica hired this spring by a police department in Maine was arrested last week after trying to buy a gun, authorities said.
Jon Luke Evans, who works as a reserve police officer in Old Orchard Beach, was taken into custody by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials on July 25, the agency said.
Evans, who entered the US via Miami in September 2023 on a weeklong visa, never returned home and wound up becoming a cop in the popular resort town, according to ICE.
His illegal status was uncovered after the reserve officer attempted to purchase a firearm that he told officials he needed for his job.
'The fact that a police department would hire an illegal alien and unlawfully issue him a firearm while on duty would be comical if it weren't so tragic,' said ICE Boston acting Field Office Director Patricia H. Hyde.
'We have a police department that was knowingly breaking the very law they are charged with enforcing in order to employ an illegal alien.'
The Old Orchard Beach Police Department confirmed Evans' employment, adding that he was a member of the reserves and was hired in May.
Reserve police officers are part-time employees hired on a seasonal basis to assist the department with tasks including beach patrol and community policing, the department said.
Reserve officers do carry firearms but are not allowed to bring them home and must return them to the department after their shifts, according to Old Orchard Police Chief Elise Chard.
Chard clarified that reserve officers aren't asked to purchase firearms themselves and aren't allowed to carry other firearms for their duties.
As part of the police department's hiring process, Evans was required to submit an I-9 Form to the Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify Program, the department said.
An I-9 Form is a required document to work in the US. Both citizens and undocumented migrants are required to submit the form before employment.
Chief Chard confirmed that Evans submitted his I-9 Form to Homeland Security and submitted photo identification for his employment with the department.
'The form was submitted and approved by DHS on May 12, 2025,' the police chief said.
'Evans would not have been permitted to begin work as a reserve officer until and unless Homeland Security verified his status.'
The department added that Evans had an approved Employment Authorization Document that wasn't set to expire until March 2030.
Maine allows non-citizens to work in law enforcement as long as they obtain legal work authorization.
Chief Chard said that Evans had passed all physical and medical checks, a background check, and was approved by DHS before starting as a reserve officer.
After his detainment by ICE, Evans's probationary status with the department was put under review.
The department said it wasn't notified of his arrest and found out about Evans' detainment from a public news release.
'In hiring Evans, our department and our community relied on the Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify program to ensure we were meeting our obligations, and we are distressed and deeply concerned about this apparent error on the part of the federal government,' the department said in a statement.
'We intend to investigate this matter to determine what other steps we should take moving forward to ensure our continued compliance with all applicable laws.'
