The sanctuary state of Connecticut freed an illegal alien from jail after he served his sentence for the murder of two children, rather than turning him over to ICE for deportation.
Israel Alejandro Gonzalez-Arcinega, a 40-year-old illegal alien from Mexico, murdered two children in a drunk driving accident in Meriden, Connecticut, in November 2013. The children were siblings, ages five and eight. Gonzalez-Arcinega then drove off.
Instead of releasing Gonzalez-Arcinega from police custody, ICE officials requested custody of him and issued a detainer for him that same month.
After being found guilty on two counts of vehicular manslaughter, three counts of second-degree vehicular assault, and one count of operating a motor vehicle illegally while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and one count of avoiding responsibility for a death or serious injury, Gonzalez-Arcinega was freed by April 2014.
Gonzalez-Arcinega received a 12-year prison term along with a five-year probationary period.
In September 2014, ICE officers issued Gonzalez-Arcinega a Notice to Appear (NTA), and on May 14, 2015, a federal immigration judge issued an order for Gonzalez-Arcinega’s deportation from the country.
The CT Department of Corrections freed Gonzalez-Arcinega from jail on April 2 in defiance of the deportation order and detainer, but they did not tell ICE officers about it.
In Meriden, ICE officials detained Gonzalez-Arcinega on May 1. While awaiting his deportation to Mexico, he is still in ICE custody.
In a statement, ICE representative Todd Lyons stated that Israel Gonzalez “was convicted of driving under the influence and killing two Connecticut children. His acts caused a family to fall apart. We cannot enable convicted felons who are in our communities illegally to victimize the people who live there.”
