Latest news with #U-visa
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Federal officials under scrutiny after alleging undocumented Milwaukee man threatened Trump
Immigration officials this week said an undocumented man arrested in Milwaukee had threatened to kill President Donald Trump — but their account of events is now facing scrutiny. Now, his family members say they are receiving death threats. Ramón Morales Reyes, 54, a Mexican immigrant living in Milwaukee, was arrested May 22 on Milwaukee's south side, shortly after dropping his daughter off at a school. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a news release six days later accusing Morales Reyes of writing a letter threatening to assasinate Trump. The letter published by DHS reads, 'I will self deport myself back to Mexico but not before I use my 30 yard 6 to shoot your precious president in (h)is head.' The "30 yard 6" mentioned in the letter likely refers to a type of hunting rifle. The DHS news release said an intelligence officer with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement received the letter in the mail on May 21, a day before agents arrested Morales Reyes. However, his family members and his attorney say Morales Reyes — who does not speak English and is not proficient at writing in Spanish — could not have authored the letter. According to his lawyer, Kime Abduli, Morales Reyes is from a rural part of Mexico where education was not readily accessible growing up. A CNN report citing a "high-level law enforcement official who was briefed on the case" also said officials had already determined Reyes did not write the letter by the time they interviewed him. Reyes' handwriting and the handwriting on the letter didn't match, the source told CNN. DHS was "careless" with their issuance of the statement, according to Abduli. She said the public statement from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has already done irreversible damage to the family and prompted numerous death threats against them on social media. Morales Reyes is a victim in a robbery and assault case and was in the process of applyling for a U-visa, Abuduli said. U-visas allow undocumented victims of certain crimes to stay in the U.S. for up to four years if they agree to help law enforcement in the investigation of the crime. According to Abudli, his family believes the letter may have been written by someone connected to the case in an attempt to get Morales Reyes deported before he could testify. According to CNN, investigators also believe this is the case. Morales Reyes is currently detained at Dodge Detention Center in Juneau. Voces de la Frontera, an immigrant rights group that has been in contact with Morales Reyes' family, is urging DHS to retract its news release and issue a correction to clear Morales Reyes' name. "Because of this lack of investigation, they are putting other people's lives under threat, and they're interfering with his due process rights and his pending legal cases," said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director at Voces de la Frontera. DHS did not answer the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's questions May 29 about what evidence connected the letter to Morales Reyes. "The investigation into the threat is ongoing," a senior DHS official said in an email. "Over the course of the investigation, this individual was determined to be in the country illegally and that he had a criminal record. He will remain in custody." According to the DHS statement, Morales Reyes entered the U.S. without authorization 'at least nine times' between 1998 and 2005. Publicly available records connect Morales Reyes to two incidents in 1996, one where he was accused of a hit-and-run and another where he was charged with disorderly conduct and criminal damage to property, related to domestic violence. Based on the available documents, Morales Reyes was not charged for the alleged hit-and-run and the criminal damage charge was dismissed. He received a non-criminal conviction for the disorderly conduct charge, which usually refers to a ticket, the documents show. The arrest of Morales Reyes comes amid the Trump administration's aggressive nationwide crackdown on unauthorized immigration. The administration's efforts have included tripling arrest quotas for immigration agents, detaining students who participated in campus protests, deporting children who are U.S. citizens along with their undocumented parents, and wrongly deporting a Maryland man to a notorious prison in El Salvador. Immigration officials also recently carried out four arrests at the Milwaukee County Courthouse, leading to federal charges against a judge accused of helping an undocumented defendant evade federal agents. The federal government's actions are the subject of multiple legal challenges in various courts over whether they violate the Constitution. Neumann-Ortiz said the family is under a "tremendous amount of stress" and the DHS statement has added to that. "They want his name cleared, and they want those death threats to stop," Neumann-Ortiz said. "They're based on something that's not true." Eva Wen is a reporter with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Reach her at qwen@ This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee man's ICE arrest sparks scrutiny of federal agents' account
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Immigration agents arrest Milwaukee man after he drops off child at school
A father of three was arrested by immigration agents the morning of May 22 shortly after dropping off his daughter at school in Milwaukee's south side, according to the man's attorney. Immigration attorney Kime Abduli said her client, whom she declined to name publicly, was arrested around South 9th Street and West National Avenue. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel agreed not to publish the man's name to avoid identifying his family members. The arrest, near a school, is unusual. Under previous administrations, immigration officers were told not to arrest people at sensitive locations like schools, hospitals and churches. The Trump administration reversed that guidance in January. 'Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America's schools and churches to avoid arrest,' the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement at the time. According to Abduli, her client has been in the U.S. for at least 25 years and had recently applied for a U-visa. U-visas allow undocumented victims of certain crimes to stay in the U.S. for up to four years if they agree to help law enforcement in the investigation of the crime. The perpetrator was found with her client's help, Abduli said. However, Abduli said her client has yet to receive an update on his application for the visa. "This is proof that immigrants help keep communities safe," Abduli said. "Because when they feel safe enough to do so, they report crimes to the authorities." U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement declined to comment on the arrest. The incident comes amid the Trump administration's nationwide immigration crackdown and after multiple high-profile ICE arrests at the Milwaukee County Courthouse, including one that led to federal charges against a county judge. Advocates oppose the arrest of undocumented immigrants at schools and hospitals, arguing that it is preventing immigrants and their families from going to school and seeking medical attention. Abduli said she is disheartened by the administration's portrayal of immigrants as criminals. Research shows that immigrants, including those who are in the U.S. without authorization, have lower crime rates than U.S. citizens. Her client is from Mexico and his children are U.S. citizens, she said. He is being detained at Dodge Detention Facility. Eva Wen is a reporter with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Reach her at qwen@ This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Immigration agents arrest Milwaukee man after he drops off child at school
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Immigration agents arrest Milwaukee man after he drops off child at school, attorney says
A father of three was arrested by immigration agents the morning of May 22 shortly after dropping off his daughter at school in Milwaukee's south side, according to the man's attorney. Immigration attorney Kime Abduli said her client, whom she declined to name publicly, was arrested around South 9th Street and West National Avenue. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel agreed not to publish the man's name to avoid identifying his family members. The arrest, near a school, is unusual. Under previous administrations, immigration officers were told not to arrest people at sensitive locations like schools, hospitals and churches. The Trump administration reversed that guidance in January. 'Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America's schools and churches to avoid arrest,' the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement at the time. According to Abduli, her client has been in the U.S. for at least 25 years and had recently applied for a U-visa. U-visas allow undocumented victims of certain crimes to stay in the U.S. for up to four years if they agree to help law enforcement in the investigation of the crime. The perpetrator was found with her client's help, Abduli said. However, Abduli said her client has yet to receive an update on his application for the visa. "This is proof that immigrants help keep communities safe," Abduli said. "Because when they feel safe enough to do so, they report crimes to the authorities." U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement declined to comment on the arrest. The incident comes amid the Trump administration's nationwide immigration crackdown and after multiple high-profile ICE arrests at the Milwaukee County Courthouse, including one that led to federal charges against a county judge. Advocates oppose the arrest of undocumented immigrants at schools and hospitals, arguing that it is preventing immigrants and their families from going to school and seeking medical attention. Abduli said she is disheartened by the administration's portrayal of immigrants as criminals. Research shows that immigrants, including those who are in the U.S. without authorization, have lower crime rates than U.S. citizens. Her client is from Mexico and his children are U.S. citizens, she said. He is being detained at Dodge Detention Facility. Eva Wen is a reporter with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Reach her at qwen@ This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Immigration agents arrest Milwaukee man after school drop-off, attorney says
India Today
21-05-2025
- Politics
- India Today
In big US visa scam, Indian admits to staging robberies across US
As the Trump administration acts to plug the holes that allowed illegal immigrants to stay back in the US, more cases of armed robberies staged to obtain U-visas are coming forward. A New York-based Indian national, Rambhal Patel, has pleaded guilty to staging armed robberies at retail stores across the US to help illegal immigrants exploit the U-visa programme, which offers deportation relief to victims of certain crimes. Since March 2023, Patel and his accomplices staged at least nine robberies across American 37, entered a guilty plea on Tuesday before US District Judge Myong J Joun in Boston to one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud. His sentencing has been scheduled for August 20. In December 2023, Patel was charged along with a fake robbery was caught on surveillance cameras. The footage showed a burglar waving a weapon, taking cash, and escaping the scene. The "victims" paid Patel to participate in the scheme. One purported victim paid $20,000 (approximately Rs 17.43 lakh) to Patel for staging one of the armed robberies, according to the PAID FOR ALLOWING STORES FOR STAGED ROBBERIES Even the store owners were complicit in these staged exchange for using their stores, Patel paid the owners for access to the in March 2023, Patel and his alleged co-conspirator set up and carried out at least nine staged robberies at convenience stores and restaurants, with five of them in Massachusetts, according to a statement issued by the US Attorney's Office, District of purpose of the staged robberies was to allow the store clerks, who were living in the US illegally, to claim that they were victims of a violent crime on an application for U non-immigrant status (U-Visa).A U-Visa is available to victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and who have been helpful to law enforcement in the investigation or prosecution of criminal U-Visa was introduced in 2000 to encourage undocumented immigrants to report EXPECTED TO PLEAD GUILTY ON MAY 22At least two co-conspirators submitted U-Visa applications based on staged armed Patel was charged in December 2023, his co-conspirator, identified as Singh, is expected to plead guilty on May 22, the statement charge of conspiracy to commit visa fraud carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250, a separate case, Fairfield County Police in Connecticut last week charged two Indian nationals for staging a fake robbery in police questioned the shop owner, Birenkumar Patel, in connection with the robbery, he admitted the incident was orchestrated to allow the clerk of his shop, Laxitkumar Patel, to remain in the US by exploiting the U-Visa program, according to the Fairfield County Sheriff's Office statement. It was the clerk who called the police to file a false robbery complaint.
