Illegal alien with suspected gang ties remains in US despite committing 'at least 22 criminal offenses': Report

A Venezuelan national who illegally snuck into the United States may not be deported despite committing "at least 22 criminal offenses" in New York City, according to the New York Post and a recent House committee report.

A 10-page report from the House Judiciary Committee revealed that the Biden-Harris administration's open-border policies allowed Daniel Hernandez-Martinez — a 30-year-old Venezuelan national with suspected ties to Tren de Aragua, a violent gang — to remain in the country even after being accused of committing a string of crimes.

'Threatened and assaulted multiple people.'

Hernandez-Martinez was released into the U.S. in early 2023 "without any legal justification," according to the report. It is unclear what vetting procedures were followed when Border Patrol initially encountered him, the report noted.

Within his first two months in New York City, Hernandez-Martinez was arrested and released six times for alleged criminal activity, including random attacks on at least three strangers and two New York Police Department officers.

"In addition to a string of petty thefts, including 'using a large metal pipe to break locks to steal bicycles in Times Square,' Martinez is alleged to have threatened and assaulted multiple people, including hitting a man with a bike tire, kicking a woman and dragging her by her hair, threatening another person with a chain, and pulling 'out a large knife and advanc[ing] toward an undercover officer,'" the report read.

DHS sources told the Post that after his arrest in January, Hernandez-Martinez was deported to Mexico under Title 42. However, he snuck back into the country at a later unknown date and location.

The House Judiciary Committee obtained the illegal alien's case history information from the Biden-Harris administration's Department of Homeland Security nearly six months after initially requesting it.

After Hernandez-Martinez's seventh encounter with law enforcement in New York City, Immigration and Customs Enforcement issued a detainer request; however, the New York City Department of Corrections did not honor the request — as is often the case in sanctuary jurisdictions like New York City.

"Despite his criminal history and suspected gang affiliation, it remains unclear whether ICE has removed Hernandez-Martinez from the United States," the House Judiciary report stated.

According to the Post, Hernandez-Martinez was taken into ICE custody and remains detained in Buffalo, New York. An order for his removal was issued in June, but Venezuela does not accept deportation flights. Sources told the Post that, as a result, the illegal alien will likely remain in the U.S. indefinitely.

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