Criminal Alien of the Week Report 11-12-20 by David Cross
It has been an interesting second week in the month of November when it comes to criminal aliens (illegal aliens) here in the Pacific Northwest states of Oregon, Washington and Idaho.
This week we examine for Pacific Northwest radio listeners an illegal alien previously removed from the United States who has been charged with drug trafficking in Malheur County, Oregon.
On Friday, October 30, 2020 the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon (USAODO) issued a news release titled “Two Individuals Charged With Trafficking Large Amounts Of Meth In Eastern Oregon.”
One of the subjects in the USAODO news release, Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz, age 52, has been charged with possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, and also charged with possession of a firearm by a person unlawfully in the United States.
According to Law enforcement records, Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz was previously deported to Mexico in 2013.
Some background information, on October 25, 2020, during a coordinated law enforcement traffic stop of a 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe that Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz was allegedly driving, police discovered 40 pounds of methamphetamine and a kilo of heroin.
Since her initial arrest on local drug charges and incarceration in Malheur County Jail, Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz (State of Oregon Case Number: 20CR58696; SID: 23957795; DOB: XX/XX/1978) has been moved to the Jackson County Jail in Medford, Oregon.
Wanting additional information historical immigration status of Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz, the “Criminal Alien of the Week Report” contacted on Monday, November 9, 2020 via e-mail U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Public Affairs Officer (PAO) Tanya Roman.
On Wednesday, November 11, 2020 ICE Public Affairs Officer Roman sent via e-mail the following statement on Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz:
“Repeat immigration violator Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz is a citizen of Mexico and in the United States illegally. Records indicate that she first attempted to enter the U.S. at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in June 2006 by presenting identification documents that did not belong to her. Officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (USCBP) determined she was not in possession of proper documents to enter the U.S. and allowed her to return to Mexico.
USCBP officers encountered Pacheco-Ortiz a time second in May 2013 at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, when she again attempted to enter the U.S. with documents that did not belong to her. Pacheco-Ortiz was found to be inadmissible, was allowed to withdrawal her application for admission, and was returned to Mexico.
On Oct. 26, 2020, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers encountered Pacheco-Ortiz at the Malheur County Jail after she was arrested on local charges. ERO lodged an immigration detainer. On Nov. 6, 2020, Pacheco Ortiz was transferred to the Jackson County Jail, where another immigration detainer was issued. She currently remains in the Jackson County jail pending the outcome of those charges.” – Tanya Román, ICE Public Affairs Officer.
“ICE is charged with enforcing federal immigration laws enacted by Congress. Deportation officers with ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations are sworn law enforcement officers who carry out the arrest, detention, and removal of illegal aliens found to be in the United States unlawfully. ICE allocates the agency’s finite immigration enforcement resources by prioritizing public and national security threats, immigration fugitives and illegal reentrants. However, all of those in violation of immigration laws may be subject to immigration arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the United States.”
About Detainers
Under federal law, ICE has the authority to lodge immigration detainers with law enforcement partners who have custody of individuals arrested on criminal charges and who ICE has probable cause to believe are removable aliens. The detainer form asks the other law enforcement agency to notify ICE in advance of release and to maintain custody of the alien for a brief period of time so that ICE can take custody of that person in a safe and secure setting upon release from that agency’s custody.” – ICE Public Affairs.
The preceding statement from ICE Public Affairs Officer Roman is an excellent example of ICE Enforcement and Operations (ERO) Officer’s identifying and tracking the location of a criminal alien, like Alma Lorena Pacheco-Ortiz, wherever the individual is incarcerated during the state or federal judicial process as they await trial for their alleged crime.