Latest news with #FirearmsandExplosives
New York Post
7 hours ago
- New York Post
Illegal immigrant caught working as police officer in Maine while attempting to buy firearm
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested a Jamaican national for allegedly attempting to purchase a firearm illegally while employed as a reserve police officer in Old Orchard Beach. According to ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in Boston, Jon Luke Evans was taken into custody with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) after his firearm purchase attempt raised concerns tied to his immigration status on July 25 in Biddeford. Advertisement Federal authorities say Evans legally entered the United States through Miami International Airport on Sept. 24, 2023, under a visa that required his departure by Oct. 1, 2023. He failed to leave as required and has remained in the country unlawfully since. During the investigation, Evans reportedly claimed he was seeking to purchase the firearm for use in his role with the Old Orchard Beach Police Department. 4 Jon Luke Evans was taken into custody with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) after his firearm purchase attempt raised concerns tied to his immigration status on July 25 in Biddeford. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Advertisement ICE officials are now questioning how an individual without lawful immigration status was hired by a local police agency and possibly issued a department-issued weapon. 'This case raises serious concerns,' said Patricia H. Hyde, acting field office director for ERO Boston. 'We will continue working to ensure that individuals who violate immigration laws and pose potential threats to public safety are held accountable.' The Old Orchard Beach Police Department told Fox News Digital that Evans was hired in May as a seasonal officer and underwent a full background check, physical and medical screening, and law enforcement training. 4 During the investigation, Evans reportedly claimed he was seeking to purchase the firearm for use in his role with the Old Orchard Beach Police Department. Old Orchard Beach Police Department Advertisement As part of the hiring process, the department submitted his employment documents to DHS through the federal E-Verify system. According to police, DHS confirmed Evans' eligibility to work, and his Employment Authorization Document showed an expiration date of March 2030. 'Our department and our community relied on the Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify program to ensure we were meeting our obligations,' said Police Chief Elise Chard. 'We are distressed and deeply concerned about this apparent error on the part of the federal government.' Maine is one of about a dozen states that allows non-citizens with valid work permits to serve in law enforcement. Reserve officers in Old Orchard Beach are seasonal employees tasked with community patrols and do not take department-issued firearms home or carry personal weapons while on duty. 4 ICE officials are now questioning how an individual without lawful immigration status was hired by a local police agency and possibly issued a department-issued weapon. Old Orchard Beach Police Department Advertisement Evans' probationary status is currently under review, and the department has launched an internal investigation to evaluate its hiring protocols and ensure compliance with all federal and state laws. 'We take our legal responsibilities very seriously,' Chief Chard added. 'We intend to investigate this matter thoroughly and determine what additional steps may be necessary moving forward.' 4 The Old Orchard Beach Police Department told Fox News Digital that Evans was hired in May as a seasonal officer and underwent a full background check, physical and medical screening, and law enforcement training. WMTW The arrest of Evans follows a similar case from April, in which ICE officers detained another illegal immigrant law enforcement employee in Falmouth, Maine. Gratien Milandou Wamba, a 32-year-old Congolese national, was working as a corrections officer when he was apprehended by ICE for immigration violations after allegedly attempting to purchase a firearm illegally. 'Officers with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston field office arrested Gratien Milandou Wamba, an illegally present, 32-year-old citizen of Congo,' ICE Spokesperson James Covington, noting the arrest stemmed from an unlawful firearm purchase attempt. ICE emphasized that it will continue enforcement efforts across New England, working in coordination with other federal agencies to identify and apprehend individuals in violation of U.S. immigration laws, especially those employed in sensitive public safety positions.
Boston Globe
16 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Seasonal police officer in Old Orchard Beach, Maine arrested by ICE, officials confirm
Maine is one of about a dozen states that allows non-citizen residents to work in law enforcement, according to the department. Advertisement Evans legally arrived in the US via Miami International Airport on Sept. 24, 2023 but failed to board his return flight to Jamaica a week later on Oct. 1, 2023, ICE's statement said. His attempt to buy a gun triggered an alert to agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, who worked in coordination with ICE to make the arrest. 'Jon Luke Evans not only broke U.S. immigration law, but he also illegally attempted to purchase a firearm,' Patricia H. Hyde, ICE's acting field office director for the agency's enforcement and removal operations in Boston, said in the statement. 'Shockingly, Evans was employed as a local law enforcement officer,' Hyde's statement said. 'The fact that a police department would hire an illegal alien and unlawfully issue him a firearm while on duty would be comical if it weren't so tragic.' Advertisement 'We have a police department that was knowingly breaking the very law they are charged with enforcing in order to employ an illegal alien,' Hyde's statement continued. 'ICE Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing criminal alien threats from our New England communities.' Old Orchard Beach's police chief, Elise Chard, issued a statement that said when the department hired Evans, the US Department of Homeland Security, on May 12, verified and approved Evans's authorization to work in the US. 'Evans would not have been permitted to begin work as a reserve officer until and unless Homeland Security verified his status‚' Chard's statement said. 'The Police Department was notified that Evans was legally permitted to work in the U.S., and his I-766 Employment Authorization Document was not set to expire until March 2030,' Chard said. The department was not officially notified of Evans' detention and only learned about it when ICE issued a news release, Chard's statement said. 'The Old Orchard Beach Police Department takes its legal responsibilities very seriously, and takes great care to follow the laws that we are tasked with enforcing,' Chard said. 'In hiring Evans, our department and our community relied on the Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify program to ensure we were meeting our obligations, and we are distressed and deeply concerned about this apparent error on the part of the federal government.' Chard said the police department intends to investigate the matter 'to determine what other steps we should take moving forward to ensure our continued compliance with all applicable laws.' It is standard hiring process at the department for new hires to complete an I-9 federal immigration and work authorization form, according to Chard's statement. Advertisement 'As part of the hiring process, the Town reviewed multiple forms of identification, including photo identification, and submitted Evans' I-9 form to the Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify Program,' Chard's statement said. 'The Department of Homeland Security then verified that Evans was authorized to work in the U.S.' The State of Maine, by law, allows those with legal work authorization to work in law enforcement, Chard said. In Old Orchard Beach, reserve police officers are part-time, seasonal employees who must meet the same background checks, pass the same physical agility tests, and receive the same medical evaluations as full-time police officers, according to Chard's statement. Reserve officers patrol the beach and the community. They are trained and issued a firearm but are not allowed to take their department-issued gun home with them, Chard's statement said. 'Reserve officers are not requested to, nor are they allowed to purchase or carry any other firearms for the performance of their duties.' Chard said. Evans passed all physical, medical, and background checks, was approved by Homeland Security and underwent training before he was deployed, Chard said. Evans' probationary employment status is now under review and 'a thorough internal review of the facts and circumstances' will be conducted, Chard said. Tonya Alanez can be reached at
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Miami Herald
Man, 18, arrested in fatal shooting in University of New Mexico dorm
An 18-year-old man was arrested in the death of a 14-year-old boy and injury of a 19-year-old while playing video games at a University of New Mexico student housing complex in Albuquerque, police said. The campus reopened on Saturday, the university said in a news release. The suspect, John Fuentes, was arrested around 2:30 p.m. local time Friday in Los Lunas, 25 miles south of Albuquerque and about 13 hours after the shooting at Casas del Rio housing was taken into custody at 3 a.m. Saturday at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque. He is facing charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and tampering with evidence, New Mexico State Police said. Fuentes was arrested during a traffic stop on Highway 314 in Valencia County. Several agencies, including state police, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office and Albuquerque police, looked for Fuentes. Fuentes was one of four teenagers playing video games in a dorn room, New Mexico State Police Chief Troy Weisler said at a news conference. According to court documents Saturday obtained by KOAT-TV, Fuentes went to the dorm parking lot in his father's vehicle. At 10:20 p.m., he met with the 14-year-old and another person, police said. A fourth person told authorities they were playing video games, and the Fuentes appeared to be on drugs. The victim was shot in the head. He said they fled through a window. Police said Fuentes first went to his car and then wound up on the first story of the housing building where he injured himself while smashing several windows. Blood stains, a stolen Glock 9mm handgun, keys and a pair of blue jeans were left on the roof, police said. Two people picked him up in a pickup around 1:40 a.m., police said. Gunfire was detected after midnight at the dormitory. At 1:36 a.m., police responded to an alarm from the dorm building. They found a broken window and what appeared to be blood, Weisler said. Police found the dead 14-year-old inside the dorm. The young teen hasn't been identified. At 2:30 a.m., a 19-year-old man arrived at a hospital with a gunshot wound. The university first reported the incident at 3:27 a.m. via Lobo Alerts. Central campus had been closed 'out of an abundance of caution,' the school posted on X. For about five hours people were told to shelter in place. Late Friday, the university said the campus would reopen Saturday with all planned activities. The dormitory also reopened, the school posted on X. 'This is a tragic incident that has had a deep impact on our entire community,' Weisler said. The University of Mexico has about 22,000 students enrolled but much fewer during the summer. More than 400 students were attending new student orientation and were staying in the dormitories. 'We understand this incident may be especially distressing for new students and their families,' University President Garnett S. Stokes said in a statement. 'We want to assure everyone that we are fully committed to your safety and well-being.' Copyright 2025 UPI News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
New Straits Times
19-07-2025
- New Straits Times
Three killed in explosion at US police training facility
LOS ANGELES, United States: Three people died on Friday in an explosion at a police training facility in Los Angeles, in what one local official called an accident. "Tragically, they were three sworn members who were fatally killed," said Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna. "No other department members were injured or transported to any hospitals." Speaking to reporters hours after the incident, Luna emphasised that authorities had yet to determine the cause of the blast, but that there was no threat to the community. "Within the last 30 minutes, the LAPD bomb squad rendered the scene safe," the sheriff said. "We have to go back and investigate what happened from the very beginning. I don't have the facts at this point." Homicide detectives and personnel from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were at the scene, along with a bomb disposal unit from the Los Angeles Police Department. An elected city official from the area where the blast took place ruled out terrorism and called it "a tragic accident." "Early on, there were people speculating that this was intentional by, you know, some terrorists, but it was not, is what I'm hearing. It was a tragic accident," said Supervisor Kathryn Barger. The Los Angeles Times newspaper quoted unnamed sources as saying that the facility's bomb squad was moving explosives following a bomb alert when the blast occurred. Law enforcement personnel enforced a large security perimeter around the parking lot where the explosion took place, an AFP photographer observed. Sheriff Luna said it was the largest loss of life for his department since 1857 and that the three people killed had served the country for a total of 74 years. Their names have not yet been released. US Attorney General Pam Bondi posted on X that there "appears to be a horrific incident that killed at least three at a law enforcement training facility" and that investigators were on-site "working to learn more." Mayor Karen Bass said "arson investigators and members of the LAPD bomb squad are assisting" at the scene in the Biscailuz Training Centre in the Monterey Park area. "The thoughts of all Angelenos are with all of those impacted by this blast," she said on X. California Governor Gavin Newsom's office said he had been briefed and was "closely monitoring the situation." Footage from local station KTLA, which helicoptered over the training centre, showed a person in bomb disposal gear working around a truck believed to contain explosives, which law enforcement personnel had covered with a large tent.
Miami Herald
18-07-2025
- Miami Herald
‘Don't Lie for the Other Guy.' ATF targets straw purchases of guns
In the year Ashley Perez has worked as a cashier for an indoor gun range, she has witnessed a grim trend that firearm retailers have seen in recent years. 'I had a homeless lady come in. ... She was trying to purchase a gun, but just with dollar bills. ... [Another time] a mother came in to buy her younger son a gun, saying, 'It's for me,' while the son was saying it's for him,' the 24-year-old described seeing last summer. Perez and her team at Top Gun Indoor Range Florida in Kendall identified the pattern in both cases almost instantly. They were tell-tale attempts at straw purchases — buying firearms for people legally prohibited from owning them. It's a federal crime that could land an a offender a $250,000 fine and a 15-year prison sentence. A 2022 act signed by then-President Joe Biden tacks on 10 more years behind bars if the gun is used to commit a felony, an act of terrorism or a drug-trafficking crime. In a public campaign, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is warning potential straw purchasers about those steep penalties. . 'The message behind the campaign is simple: If you're buying a gun for someone who can't legally own one, you are committing a crime,' said Florida Department of Law Enforcement Special Agent John Vecchio during a Friday press conference at the gun range. 'You're helping potentially arm someone with dangerous intentions.' Vecchio joined the ATF, Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office and National Shooting Sports Foundation at Top Gun to announce the newest iteration of the 'Don't Lie for the Other Guy' campaign, which aims to curb the crime. Next month, South Floridians can expect to see billboards and posters with messaging that includes 'Buy a gun for someone who can't and buy yourself 15 years in jail.' Listeners of top radio stations and podcasts will hear the same. The 25-year-old, nationwide campaign isn't changing its strategies, but instead focusing on South Florida, which is a magnet for domestic and international gun trafficking. 'The availability of firearms is higher here and the restrictions on sales are a little bit less than they are in some states,' explained Rob Cekada, the ATF's deputy director, on why the crime is prevalent in the area. 'One of the reasons we picked Miami ... there's a lot of firearms trafficking that begins here and ends up in the Caribbean and also ends up in Mexico as well.' But the real danger behind straw-purchasing, Cekada says, is how it arms South Florida felons and encourages violent crimes. The deputy director's latest investigation, he shared, is still turning up illegally traded guns at crime scenes that happened in Miami and Margate and are linked to two Florida straw purchasers who bought more than 48 firearms. A 2024 ATF report confirms the pipeline nationwide, revealing that of the 7,000+ cases between 2017 and 2021 in which firearms were peddled, 60% of the 'end users' had at least one prior felony conviction. 'Rarely do we recover a firearm at a crime scene that was purchased by the perpetrator,' said Hayden O'Byrne, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, at the briefing. He added that retailers such as Top Gun and other federal firearm licensees play a large role in preventing straw purchases, calling them 'the first line of defense.' FFLs are individuals or businesses allowed to manufacture, import and deal firearms and are required to renew the permit with ATF every three years. Because Florida gun laws require only federal firearm licensees — not private sellers — to conduct background checks when transferring firearms, employees such as Perez are crucial to preventing the crime. 'We look out for signs, that's the first thing we do. The second we see a person walk through the door, we see the way they stand, the way they're speaking, if they're grabbing their phone too much,' she said. 'We want our hands [clean], and we want to do it the right way and the legal way.' That's why the 'Don't Lie for the Other Guy' campaign is teaching retailers how to identify straw-purchasers. 'This is a two-prong approach,' said Joseph Bartozzi, president of the NSSF, which launched the campaign with the ATF in 2000. 'Part of it is we help to work with the retailers like this to teach them about how to identify the red flags.' The other half? To warn everyday people unaware of the crime's severity before they make the mistake. Bartozzi cleared up that though money is a key motivator for those initiating straw purchases, it's not the only one. Peer pressure and 'a sense of loyalty' to family or friends explain why some participate in the crime. Others are emotionally manipulated or threatened with physical harm by those barred from owning guns themselves. Some just don't know it's illegal. 'It's not just criminal, but even unwitting, law-abiding people that might be caught up with a boyfriend or girlfriend,' he said. 'We want to make sure everyone understands that it is a crime, even if it's unintentionally related to a crime that's going to be committed later on.'
