| | |  Americas & Beyond | March 2009 
US Nabs and Returns Murderer to Mexico
 Jim Kouri - American Chronicle
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A man wanted by the Mexican government for his involvement in several murders, robbery, kidnapping and ties to organized crime was escorted back to Mexico by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and turned over to authorities in Mexico City.
Liberio Andrew Gonzalez, an illegal alien, departed the United States without incident on Saturday, March 7 and was turned over to the Mexican Federal Police (Federales) at Mexico City International Airport.
"This arrest serves as an example for foreign criminals to think twice before fleeing to the United States to avoid prosecution," said Christopher Shanahan, field office director for the ICE Office of Detention and Removal Operations in New York.
"ICE is committed to working with its local, federal and international law enforcement partners to arrest and return wanted fugitives to their native countries to face justice," he added.
While Gonzalez was merely one of over a half-million illegal alien fugitive cases, his case is considered a significant one.
Gonzalez, who has no known criminal history in the United States, was the subject of a criminal investigation in Mexico but fled before police could arrest him. ICE's Fugitive Operations Team arrested Gonzalez without incident in Staten Island, New York for being in the United States illegally.
Gonzalez's arrest was a result of close cooperation between ICE, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Mexican Federal Police.
ICE´s Fugitive Operations Teams give top priority to cases involving aliens who pose a threat to national security and community safety, including members of transnational street gangs, child sex offenders, and aliens with prior convictions for violent crimes.
The Fugitive Operations Team officers and agents use intelligence-based information and leads to locate and arrest aliens who have been ordered to leave the country by an immigration judge, but have failed to comply.
The National Fugitive Operations Program is responsible for reducing the fugitive alien population in the United States. ICE´s databases show that the targeted enforcement strategy is paying off. The nation's fugitive alien population continues to decline, according to the Department of Homeland Security's press office.
At the end of FY 2008, there were approximately 560,000 fugitive alien cases - a decrease of nearly 37,000 since the beginning of the fiscal year. This is a historic reversal of the previous growth trend in fugitive cases, according to DHS officials.
Jim Kouri, CPP is fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and served in law enforcement for over 25 years. |
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