One of the primary concerns raised in recent years in response to the border crisis brought on by President Joe Biden’s lax immigration policies involves the unknown number of violent criminals flooding into the United States.
The death of college student Laken Riley earlier this year, allegedly at the hands of undocumented immigrant Jose Ibarra, served as a glaring example for critics of the Biden administration — and this week, new information surfaced regarding why Ibarra was released into the U.S. in the first place.
According to an immigration file referenced by U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) during a Senate hearing to consider the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the Department of Homeland Security opted to set Ibarra free because there was not enough room in the overcrowded detention facility where he was being held.
Although the agency has the authority to grant parole to migrants in its custody, such exceptions have typically been reserved for cases in which doing so would serve a humanitarian purpose.
“Now we all know that the reason he was paroled into this country is because of lack of detention capacity, which you and I both know is not a valid reason,” Hawley told Mayorkas.
Reports indicate that Ibarra was initially released shortly after arriving in the U.S. in 2022 and, upon returning to be fingerprinted the next year, authorities determined that he has a criminal history. He was subsequently charged — but not prosecuted — for allegedly injuring a child but was nevertheless granted a permit to work legally in the U.S.
“He had a criminal record to start with, he’s in the country on illegal grounds, you have falsely and illegally allowed him in, he commits a crime against a child, it’s expunged,” recapped Hawley.
For his part, Majorkas remained tight-lipped about “the particulars of the case,” though he claimed that “our hearts break” for the loss experienced by Riley’s loved ones.
Senator @HawleyMO: “Is this a record that you are proud of?
DHS Sec. Mayorkas: “You have misstated some facts.”
Senator Hawley: “I have read from [Jose Ibarra’s] parole file. I am reading from it…You have lied repeatedly to Congress.” pic.twitter.com/K3UhCslpjS
— Conservative War Machine (@WarMachineRR) April 18, 2024
Hawley wrapped up his questioning with a reference to opposing responses Mayorkas had previously offered regarding Ibarra’s case, asking: “Why did you change your story so often?”
Mayorkas only responded: “I’m confident that justice will be vindicated in the criminal prosecution.”
The Democratic-controlled Senate moved on Wednesday to dismiss the articles of impeachment filed against Mayorkas.
