Officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Washington, D.C. field office apprehended a 45-year-old Guatemalan national on October 20, an individual with a criminal history that includes a conviction for ‘breaking and entering with intent to commit a felony.’
The arrested man, Edgar Bernabe Estrada, illegally entered the United States on an unknown date and at an unknown location without being inspected or admitted by an immigration official, according to ICE.
Estrada’s criminal record in the United States spans the early 2000s. Between April 2000 and July 2001, he was arrested and charged with larceny, manufacturing, selling, or possessing a fictitious operator’s license, and the felony breaking and entering charge.
For the breaking and entering conviction, he was sentenced to serve more than two and a half years in prison.
“Edgar Bernabe Estrada illegally entered the United States and has been arrested several times by local law enforcement. Most recently, he broke into someone’s residence with the intention of committing a felony,” said Russ Hott, ICE ERO Washington, D.C. Field Office Director.
Hott used the arrest to criticize local sanctuary policies, specifically pointing to a vote earlier this year by the Arlington County Board that prohibits law enforcement cooperation with ICE, even for cases involving transnational gang members and terrorists.
“ICE Washington, D.C. will continue our efforts to prioritize public safety of our communities by arresting and removing criminal alien offenders from our streets,” Hott stated. “We remain absolutely committed to our mission of enforcing U.S. immigration laws throughout Virginia and the District, even in jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate with ICE.”
ICE officials argue that such policies force their officers to make arrests in the community, rather than through a safe, coordinated transfer from local jails. They contend that this approach results in criminal alien offenders being released back into the community where they may reoffend, instead of being transferred to ICE custody for removal proceedings.
Estrada is now in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
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