U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Tuesday confirmed the arrest of a man it described as a previously accused child rapist in Memphis, who is now scheduled to be removed from the United States and deported to his country of origin.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) New Orleans confirmed last week that agents in Memphis arrested Rolvin Rodriquez-Chavez, an illegal immigrant from Honduras, “after Shelby County Sheriff ignored ICE’s detainer.”
The agency further revealed that Rodriquez-Chavez (pictured above)Â “was previously arrested for rape of a child and is now in removal proceedings.”
Federal immigration officials place detainers on individuals they understand to be illegal immigrants, requesting local law enforcement hold them for potential deportation proceedings.
ICE wrote in a post to the social media platform X on Wednesday, “We won’t take risks when it comes to our children. This man is an illegal alien who chose to ignore our immigration laws.”
The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) decision to ignore ICE’s request to detain Rodriquez-Chavez comports with the 2018 order by county officials to cease cooperating with federal officials.
At the time, SCSO determined it would no longer detain illegal immigrants for transfer to federal authorities but would instead inform their federal counterparts of the exact date and time that illegal immigrants would be released, allowing ICE to time their own arrests around the releases.
“Sheriff’s policy adviser Debra Fessenden says ICE is still notified whenever a non-citizen is booked into the jail. The immigration agency is allowed to make arrests at the facility, and can be notified of suspects’ release times,” The Memphis Commercial Appeal reported of SCSO in 2018. “The Sheriff’s Office provides notice to ICE that individuals are being released, due to resolution of the case or making bond, but their release is never prolonged in any way to accommodate ICE detainer requests.”
The lack of cooperation from the local sheriff’s office could explain why Shelby County reported just 59 arrests or convictions of illegal immigrants during the final quarter of 2024.
Shelby County reported drastically fewer arrests and convictions than Davidson County, the seat of Nashville, which reported 796 arrests or convictions. Knox County also reported more activity, with 242 arrests or convictions of illegal immigrants between October and December 2024.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Dimmercraps sho loves dey crinimals.
Good work, thank you ICE!