Latest news with #RIH5461
Fox News
6 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Progressive Dem rep faces backlash for calling ICE 'Nazi thugs' while defending MS-13 gang member
A progressive Democratic state representative sparked controversy after referring to ICE agents as "Nazi Gestapo thugs" following an ICE operation in Providence, Rhode Island, that resulted in the arrest of a known MS-13 gang member. "The Nazi Gestapo ICE thugs kidnapped another of our neighbors in Providence this morning. This time on Alverson St.," wrote Rep. Enrique Sanchez in social media posts. "The ICE thugs damaged a couple of residents' cars as well. They think they are above the law. I strongly condemn this act of terror and will be demanding answers and seeking action tomorrow. I am tired of this s**t. Providence doesn't want ICE thugs in our city." The arrest in question was of Ivan Rene Mendoza Meza, a 27-year-old Honduran national illegally present in the U.S. and a self-admitted member of the violent MS-13 gang. ICE sources told Fox News that during the operation, Mendoza attempted to flee, causing a crash by striking ICE vehicles before running into his apartment. He was eventually surrounded and surrendered to agents. Mendoza was seen smirking in his arrest photo, seeming to be unfazed by his capture. Mendoza has a history of criminal activity, including fentanyl trafficking charges in Rhode Island. ICE Boston had previously lodged an immigration detainer against him following those charges in August 2023. However, the 6th District Court of Rhode Island declined to honor the detainer, releasing Mendoza without notifying ICE, forcing agents to locate and arrest him in the community. According to ICE Boston spokesperson James Covington, "Mendoza is a self-admitted member of MS-13 in Honduras and states he has committed crimes on behalf of the gang." ICE spokesperson Emily Covington criticized Sanchez's remarks: "Mr. Sanchez thinks so little of his community that he refers to ruthless MS-13 as his 'neighbors'? What say you, Providence? The only 'thugs' we see are the illegal terrorist gangbangers we are trying to remove from the neighborhoods of Providence." Mendoza originally entered the U.S. illegally near San Ysidro, California, in May 2019 and was quickly returned to Mexico. However, officials say he later re-entered the country unlawfully at an unknown time and place. Sanchez, who has strongly opposed immigration enforcement, taunted ICE agents on Sunday after a farmworker died from injuries sustained from a fall during an immigration enforcement raid on a California cannabis farm. "F*** ICE," Sanchez wrote. "Vallanse a la chingada ICE." "State Representative Enrique Sanchez (D), who was arrested for DUI earlier this year, calls ICE agents "Nazi Gestapo thugs" in an online rant after an MS-13 gang member facing fentanyl charges was arrested with a smile across his face," Libs of TikTok commented on Sanchez's statements. "Just Democrats supporting criminal alien gangs over American citizens." In 2023, Sanchez filed RI H5461, a bill to give illegal immigrants the right to vote in the state. However, the bill was tabled for further study a month after it was introduced.
Fox News
16-03-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Rhode Island Democrat lawmaker arrested for DUI ordered to install car breathalyzer
After being arrested for driving while intoxicated in February, a judge in Cranston, Rhode Island, ordered a Democratic state lawmaker to install a breathalyzer in his vehicle in order to continue driving. Rep. Enrique Sanchez, a progressive Democrat who serves in the Rhode Island House of Representatives, was pulled over in the early morning hours of Feb. 3 after allegedly parking in an intersection. Bodycam footage of the traffic stop that led to his arrest shows Sanchez offering the police officer a red debit card in lieu of his driver's license before telling her that he had not had anything to drink. The footage shows Sanchez stuffing his hands in his pockets repeatedly, despite repeated orders from one police officer to remove his hands from his pockets. "How much you drink?" one of the other officers at the scene asked Sanchez. "You reak of booze, just be honest. You smell like alcohol." When an officer asked Sanchez if he would take a field sobriety test, he asked if he could order an Uber if he refused. An officer told him he would not be able to order an Uber, and he refused to take a field sobriety test at the scene. In an initial court appearance on the day of his arrest, Sanchez pleaded not guilty to driving while intoxicated, and has since pleaded not guilty to lesser civil charges of refusing a chemical test and failure to obey traffic control devices. Court records show that on Feb. 19, Sanchez's license was suspended by Cranston Magistrate William Noonan. However, he was granted a hardship license that allows him to drive to and from his day job and the State House to perform his legislative duties between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on the condition that he install an ignition interlock breathalyzer in his vehicle. In a brief pre-trial conference on Feb. 24, the case was moved from district court to the state's Superior Court. Sanchez's arrest has drawn calls for his resignation. On Feb. 10, he addressed the arrest in an X thread after a week of silence. In the thread, he noted that he was thankful to his constituents for their patience, and explained his passion for his work and the people of the state of Rhode Island. He did not apologize and instead said, "I will not let my personal actions become a distraction from the issues that truly matter – the families, businesses, and concerns of my community." "Sometimes, we are too close to something to fully see our place in it," he said. "This experience has given me a renewed clarity about my responsibilities – not just in this chamber, but in the trust my community has placed in me. I take that trust seriously and will continue to work hard every day of my life." Sanchez's attorney is former Rhode Island House Speaker John Harwood. In 2023, Sanchez filed RI H5461, a bill to give illegal immigrants the right to vote in the state. READ THE BILL: MOBILE USERS CLICK HERE The bill was tabled for further study a month after it was introduced. Fox News Digital reached out to Sanchez and Harwood for comment.
