This story, originally published at 5:37 p.m. on Feb. 1, 2024, was updated at 9:40 a.m. on Feb. 2, 2024, with an email statement from ICE spokesperson James Covington.
U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officials and Montgomery County leaders are in a dispute over an immigration detainer for an MS-13 gang member.
ICE said in a news release Tuesday that Montgomery County ignored a detainer by releasing a gang member who had been convicted of being an accessory to murder. County officials say they never received the notice that would have requested they hold the prisoner. When MoCo360 followed up, ICE officials say the county had confirmed receipt of the retainer in June.
Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich spokesperson Scott Peterson did not immediately respond Friday morning to follow-up questions from MoCo360.
ICE’s Baltimore field office, also known as Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Baltimore, arrested a Salvadoran noncitizen, 30, on Monday near his Silver Spring home after he was convicted of accessory to murder in the county in 2023, according to the release.
James Covington, ICE spokesperson, said that the agency does not release the names of noncitizens.
Montgomery County Police arrested the gang member in January 2023 and charged him as an accessory after the fact for first-degree murder, ICE said. ERO Baltimore lodged an immigration detainer against the man in June 2023 with Montgomery County Circuit Court, ICE claims in the release.
An immigration detainer is a notice that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issues to federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to inform them that ICE intends to assume custody of a person who is in police custody, according to ICE’s website.
In an email statement, Covington said that ERO Baltimore lodged the detainer against the Montgomery County Detention Center (MCDC) on June 1, and the following day they followed up with MCDC, “who confirmed that they had received the immigration retainer.”
The Salvadoran man was convicted in Montgomery County Circuit Court in September 2023 and sentenced to five years in prison, though the court suspended all but 18 months of his sentence, the release said. Then, the court “ignored ERO Baltimore’s immigration detainer and released the Salvadoran gang member,” ICE alleged in the press release.
On Jan. 23, a deportation officer from ICE ERO Baltimore reached out to MCDC about the custody of the noncitizen, but “MCDC stated that he had been released the day before in spite of the detainer having been lodged,” according to Covington.
An ICE ERO Baltimore deportation officer asked why they had not been notified of the man’s release, even though a detainer was filed, and an MCDC Officer said “that MCDC has their own policy and criteria,” but they did not elaborate further, Covington said.
On Thursday, Peterson said the county never received the release and didn’t know about the issue until this week.
“We were unaware of this incident until ICE put out a press release about it,” Peterson said in an email. “We did not receive a detainer from ICE regarding this individual and followed all processes of his release according to the law. Had there been a detainer on file, we would have notified ICE prior to his release per our policy.”
Peterson also said that Elrich did not receive any contact from ICE before the agency put out the press release.
“We defer all follow-up questions about this individual and judicial process to ICE and the courts,” Peterson said. “We are following up with them ourselves regarding this issue.”
Also, Peterson said that is important to note that Montgomery County is not a “sanctuary jurisdiction.”
“Local police and the Department of Correction and Rehabilitation work cooperatively with ICE in their work on immigration and customs violations and drug and human trafficking. The County’s arrest and detention information goes to the State and all State information is accessed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) through their Secure Communities initiative,” according to the county’s website
ERO Baltimore Field Office Director Darius Reeves said ICE is seeking the Salvadoran man’s removal from the country because he presents a safety threat.
“This unlawfully present Salvadoran gang member’s presence in the United States represents a threat to the safety and security of our residents,” Reeves said in the news release. “Not only is he a validated member of a notorious criminal enterprise, but he also aided other criminals in the commission of a murder. ERO Baltimore will continue to apprehend and remove such criminal elements from our Maryland communities.”