Agents zero in on felonious aliens

http://www.nwanews.com/adg/National/204335/

Jose Luis Loredo told police he was in Rogers visiting his sister when they arrested him in July on charges of altering a methadone prescription. Now, they say he has ties to a Texas prison gang and was hiding out in Rogers. In Madison County, Baudillo Castillo distributed meth from his rural home near Hindsville. A federal sting in 2006 snared Castillo and some of his relatives, including a daughter charged with retaliating against a federal witness. Loredo, a Mexican national, and Castillo, of Guatemala, are increasingly the kind of people whom immigration agents pursue in Arkansas, illegal aliens committing additional and serious crimes. Illegal immigrants have become a growing part of the state’s population over the past two decades. A study released in April by the Urban Institute, funded by Arkansas’ Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, indicated that of the state’s estimated foreign-born population of 101, 000, 1/2 are here illegally.
Ten years ago, federal immigration agents in Arkansas focused on raiding poultry processing plants. Agents with what was then the Immigration and Naturalization Service arrested illegal workers, put them on a plane and deported them to Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador. These days, U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement concentrate more on arresting illegal aliens who it believes are involved in drug trafficking, human trafficking, fraud or conspiracy.
The shift occurred when Immigration and Customs Enforcement came into being in 2003 under the Department of Homeland Security, replacing the Immigration and Naturalization Service. It is charged with finding and deporting illegal aliens. In Northwest Arkansas, illegal aliens like Loredo and Castillo soon will have more to worry about, because local police are training to work with immigration agents assigned to Arkansas. Nineteen police officers in Benton and Washington counties returned in September from training to enforce immigration law under the program known as 287 (g ). They plan to start a criminal apprehension task force and work in jails to identify illegal aliens not only for deportation but for federal prosecution. The Arkansas State Police and the Fort Smith Police Department also plan to apply to put officers in the 287 (g ) program. Since 2006, the U. S. attorney’s office in Fort Smith has prosecuted roughly 100 immigration-related cases. Most of the defendants were previously deported aliens who had returned to the United States. Unlike the plant workers who are deported voluntarily, these defendants were accused of additional crimes that elevated their illegal status to a federal criminal matter. Many are aggravated felons — aliens with felony convictions — and criminal aliens who belong to violent street gangs and who the government considers a threat. Recent federal cases include: Dozens of aliens distributing meth and other drugs in Northwest Arkansas. Aliens smuggling aliens. Aliens using forged or phony documents to obtain jobs, mortgages and welfare benefits. Aliens with ties to gangs.
Bob Balfe, U. S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, said federal prosecutors bring charges based on evidence gathered by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Balfe said the 287 (g ) officers working in Northwest Arkansas will serve as a force multiplier to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has 12 agents in the western district. “Once the 287 (g ) task force is up and running, our caseload will go up dramatically,” Balfe said. “The focus of [Immigration and Customs Enforcement ] is already on conspiracy, trafficking and fraud. With 287 (g ), we expect more of these type of cases to be referred to our office. We have the capacity to prosecute these additional cases, and we’ve made it clear to [Immigration ] that we will.”
The U. S. attorney’s office in Little Rock, which covers the rest of the state, also is prosecuting immigration-related cases.
Acting U. S. Attorney Jane Duke didn’t know exactly how many cases were filed this year. “Our office has been very aggressive in pursuing these types of matters,” Duke said. “We work closely with ICE and have had a number of high-profile cases recently.” SMUGGLING In western Arkansas, virtually all the methamphetamine trafficking stems from Mexican-based producers, Balfe said. As a result, many of the federal drug cases involve Hispanics, and some are illegal aliens. Castillo helped operate a large meth trafficking ring in NW Arkansas.
Castillo and three others pleaded guilty in July to conspiracy to distribute meth. Sentencing hasn’t been set. After they serve their sentences, they’re expected to be deported. The Castillo organization purchased pound after pound of methamphetamine in Texas and drove it to Northwest Arkansas hidden in vehicles, court documents state. They distributed drugs from homes in Carroll and Madison counties, and prosecutors said some proceeds were funneled back to Mexico through a money remitter business in Berryville, court documents show. They were arrested in October 2006 after federal agents wiretapped their cell phones and tracked the drug transactions. The case dovetailed into federal charges against Castillo’s daughter Karla Castillo and his nephew Leon Castillo. Karla Castillo pleaded guilty this month to retaliating against a government witness who testified against Baudillo Castillo, her father. Prosecutors said Karla Castillo damaged the informant’s car in April when they crossed paths at a Taco Bell drivethrough in Springdale.
Immigration agents have a hold on Karla Castillo, meaning they’re investigating her residency status. She is here on a visa, court documents state. Her cousin Leon Castillo was sentenced in July to three years’ probation after immigration agents said he had a forged visa. He lived with his wife and children in Rogers and worked at a Best Buy store when he was arrested in December. Attorney Chadd Mason said Leon Castillo came to the United States legally, but that he forged his visa after it expired. His immigration status came to light during the investigation into his uncle. Prosecutors said Leon Castillo wasn’t involved in the drug ring. “Leon’s been here most of his life,” Mason said. “He works and pays taxes. He’s a good kid.”
He was convicted in April of possessing a fraudulent identification document. It’s unclear whether he’ll be deported, Mason said. Leon Castillo was convicted of a misdemeanor, a crime rarely prosecuted federally. Rod Reyes, agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Fort Smith, said agents prefer to pursue aliens who are committing serious crimes. “We’d rather spend our resources on felonies” Reyes said. “Felony convictions have more of an impact. There is jail time, in addition to [deportation ].”
BACK AGAIN Illegal aliens caught in the country the first time often opt for voluntary deportation. Voluntary “removal” is an administrative action, not a criminal charge. If the alien returns, however, he’s committed a federal felony called illegal re-entry. If an alien is convicted of certain felony crimes in the United States, is deported and returns, the offense is called aggravated re-entry or “illegal re-entry of an aggravated felon.” Dozens of aliens are prosecuted every year in Arkansas for illegal and aggravated re-entry. Many have jobs and families here.
Ciriaco Sanchez-Gonzalez was convicted in April of aggravated re-entry. Sanchez-Gonzalez told immigration agents he paid a smuggler $ 1, 500 to return to the United States in 2006. He was sentenced to 27 months in prison in July. He’d been deported twice — in 2000 and again in 2006. In 2000, he was convicted in

That's the way the story ends, don't know why. When you see an Arkansas citizen hooked on Methanphetamines or hear about an overdose, you can thank those who support illegal immigration.