Law enforcement officials in Rhode Island released an illegal immigrant charged with kidnapping and other offenses in the state despite requests to detain him, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Deportation officers arrested Carlos Sebastian Natera Santa, a 22-year-old Dominican national, on May 25 after he was accused by local authorities of kidnapping, credit card fraud and violating a protection order. ICE Announced Authorities filed for a detention order after Rhode Island State Police arrested him on March 12 for violating a “no contact order,” but the sheriff's office “refused to enforce the detention order.” (Related: Despite ICE Detention, Blue State Releases Illegal Immigrant Convicted of Murdering 2 Children)
According to ICE, deportation officers were able to arrest Natera Santa the same day he was released from local custody, and he will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of his deportation proceedings.
“Carlos Sebastian Natera Santa was arrested by local police for alleged domestic kidnapping, and then arrested again five months later for violating a protective order,” ERO Boston Chapter Director Todd Lyons said in a statement. “Not only did this suspect have a complete disregard for the law, but he also posed a clear threat to the residents of Rhode Island.”
“ERO Boston will continue its mission of prioritizing public safety by apprehending and removing the most vicious criminal aliens from New England,” Lyons continued.
Special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) prepare to make an arrest for a suspected immigration violator at Fresh Mark in Salem on June 19, 2018. Image courtesy of ICE ICE/U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gad/Getty Images)
According to ICE, Border Patrol arrested Natera Santa on March 9, 2023, after she illegally entered the United States near Lukeville, Arizona. The suspect was transferred to ICE custody on March 15, 2023, but was released the same day.
Providence police arrested Natera Santa on Oct. 13, 2023, on suspicion of domestic kidnapping and credit card fraud, but she was released the next day, ICE said.
ICE said Rhode Island authorities have denied its requests to detain people in the past.
State law enforcement previously released a Colombian illegal immigrant charged with sexual assault of a “severely” mentally disabled person, despite a request to detain him. State law enforcement previously released a Guatemalan illegal immigrant charged with child sexual abuse, despite a request to detain him.
The Center for Immigration Studies, an organization that advocates for tougher immigration policies, label Rhode Island is a sanctuary jurisdiction.
Rhode Island State Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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