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| Criminal deportees often fly unescorted |
| By chron.com |
| Published: 09/30/2009 |
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Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials routinely put illegal immigrants unescorted on commercial flights for deportation, including some who are sex offenders or have other criminal records, according to documents and field agent accounts. The practice has prompted complaints from a key U.S. senator and ICE union leaders, who contend that putting illegal immigrants convicted of serious crimes on commercial airlines unescorted poses a severe public safety risk. Unescorted deportees have caused disruptions on flights and have absconded after unscheduled stops, including two Peruvian deportees who disappeared from Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport in July, according to field agent reports collected by union officials. Internal ICE documents show that illegal immigrants convicted of sex crimes involving victims as young as 11 have been allowed to fly unescorted. “This is an absolute risk to public safety,” said Chris Crane, ICE Council 118's vice president for Detention and Removal Operations. “And it's happening every day.” Of the 27,899 illegal immigrants put on commercial airlines last year for deportation, more than 75 percent flew unescorted, according to ICE data. U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., a member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, said she became “gravely concerned” about the policy after being told of at least three instances involving unescorted sex offenders placed on commercial flights. Last October, she wrote to Julie Myers, the then-head of ICE, requesting that the policy be changed to require escorts for all sex offenders. The Bush administration took no action and did not respond to the senator's letter, according to Landrieu's spokesman. Read More. |
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