The deportation of Venezuelan migrants linked to crimes has proven difficult for the United States due to their temporary protected status and their home country refusing to accept any deportees.
The problematic situation of deporting Venezuelans from U.S. soil comes at a time when these migrants have been making headlines for crimes.
For instance, a migrant from Venezuela was recently arrested in connection to the murder of a University of Georgia student named Laken Riley. The suspect, identified as 26-year-old Jose Antonio Ibarra, reportedly had no connection to Riley, with police stating that it was an apparent “crime of opportunity,” per CNN.
Ibarra reportedly crossed into the U.S. unlawfully in September 2022 with his wife and 5-year-old daughter, who were then released into the country after claiming asylum.
Ibarra’s wife spoke with The New York Post and said that the two only chose to get married “so we could join our asylum cases,” noting that the asylum claim would be more likely to get approved if they were married with a child.
Similarly, a 15-year-old Venezuelan migrant who entered the U.S. in September was arrested in New York City earlier this month for allegedly shooting and injuring a tourist in Times Square and then firing at law enforcement officers while fleeing the scene.
The teen will be charged as an adult and is facing two counts of attempted second-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree assault, two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and second-degree assault, per CNN.
However, the first hurdle to deporting those convicted of violent crimes such as these is the extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in September that it would be extending TPS for all Venezuelan migrants who arrived in the U.S. prior to July 31, 2023, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
“Temporary protected status provides individuals already present in the United States with protection from removal when the conditions in their home country prevent their safe return,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas explained in a news release about the decision.
Mayorkas has since been impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives due to the crisis at the southern border.
Those who receive TPS are eligible to legally reside and work in the country, and they are also protected from being deported by the country, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.
The second hurdle to deportations is that Venezuela has reportedly refused to accept any deportations of unlawful migrants due to the U.S. reimposing economic sanctions that were initially removed by President Joe Biden when he took office.
The two countries originally agreed upon a deal in which Venezuela would accept deported unlawful migrants from the U.S., resulting in roughly 1,800 migrants being sent back to the country over 15 different flights, per Fox News.
This deal resulted in the U.S. reducing sanctions and deporting unlawful migrants in exchange for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro agreeing to a free election, per Fox News.
However, the deal has now been halted after the Venezuelan Supreme Court barred Maduro’s main opponent, Maria Corina Machado, from running for president. The U.S. reimposed sanctions on the country in light of this action, per News Nation.
Despite concerns that Venezuelan migrants have committed crimes at a disproportionate rate, a study performed by the Venezuelan-American Caucus has indicated that a very small percentage have committed crimes since entering the U.S.
Still, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has consistently reported the apprehension of unlawful migrants with criminal records.
Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens said that agents have made more than 6,400 arrests of unlawful migrants with criminal convictions since the start of FY2024, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
The high number of arrests comes as CBP reported an unprecedented 15,267 apprehensions of migrants with criminal convictions in FY2023.