Dozens of illegal aliens who stormed the U.S.-Mexico border in March were released into the country, according to a report from the New York Post.
Reportedly, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokesperson confirmed to The Post that the illegals were released into the United States. In May, a judge in El Paso dismissed the criminal charges against all the border-crossers on a technicality, the outlet added.
The illegal immigrants accused of taking part in the riot were then released from state custody and handed over to ICE, where 43 of them were reportedly released into the country.
The spokesperson told the Post that ICE determines who is released on a “case-by-case basis.”
“ERO [Enforcement and Removal Operations] officers make decisions on associated enforcement actions and apply prosecutorial discretion, where applicable, in a responsible manner, informed by their experience as law enforcement professionals and in a way that best protects the communities we serve,” the spokesperson said.
A source from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told the Post that ICE released illegal aliens into the U.S. when they cannot be deported fast enough and then authorities need to make room at detention centers.
“Sometimes we arrest a child molester and he gets released because of housing space. Or the charge is not egregious enough to keep him or her in custody,” the DHS source said (via NYP):
While ICE has released dozens of migrants who allegedly took part in the riot, the agency has kept 32 others in custody pending court hearings and 105 in detention pending removal from the US.
Another 43 of the alleged rioters have been successfully deported, the spokesperson said.
Texas authorities labeled nine migrants as ringleaders of the riot and intended to file felony rioting charges, two of whom were released by Border Patrol soon after.
Authorities were able to nab one of them, but the other, Venezuelan national Gabriel Enrique Angarita Carrasquero, 22, who allegedly used a “rope to pull the gate down which subsequently led to the migrant rush” remains at large.
Over 200 illegal immigrants were caught on video rushing the border and attacked Texas National Guardsmen who were turning them away.
The Post noted that at least one illegal alien was seen stomping on a National Guardsman’s knee during the riot.