- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported Gonzalez in 2016 after he was charged with assault in Oxford. He reentered the U.S. and found his way back to Mississippi.
An illegal immigrant arrested for the rape of a 10-year-old in Pontotoc County crossed the southern border 24 years ago and was deported at least once before.
34-year-old Filiberto Gonzalez was detained on Aug. 12 and charged with two counts of rape of a 10-year-old boy, according to the Pontotoc County Sheriff’s Department.
Chief Criminal Investigator Jimmy Whitehead told Magnolia Tribune that Gonzalez came to the U.S. when he was 10 years old. According to Whitehead, Gonzalez was previously arrested in Pontotoc County on charges of domestic violence, alcohol-related offenses, and contempt of court.
Whitehead also said that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported Gonzalez in 2016 after he was charged with assault in Oxford, Mississippi.
After being deported, Gonzalez was able to enter the U.S. again, and find his way back to Mississippi.
Former FBI Special Agent Jonathan Gilliam told Magnolia Tribune that local authorities need to do a better job at communicating with federal law enforcement when it comes to immigration issues.
Gilliam said something as simple as a thorough traffic stop can be the difference.
“It really comes down to whether or not law enforcement is doing their job, you know, and if he was in a motor vehicle and he doesn’t have a driver’s license, then if they don’t ask him about his citizenship, they’re not going to report it,” Gilliam said.
”You know, it really is at the discretion of the locals to push that to a point where they notify the federal authorities. The federal agents are not driving around looking for that.”
“Does it rise to the level of deportation? I mean, he’s here illegally, and he’s been deported. He comes back again illegally. Well, now that’s a felony. It’s no longer a misdemeanor,” Gilliam said.
Mississippi State Auditor Shad White told Magnolia Tribune that the case is a “sad reminder that every state is now a border state.”
“We have to have a president who will secure our border and protect the American people. Our lawmakers should look carefully at every state agency to determine if there are programs that are inadvertently helping illegal immigrants and then defund those programs. This is just common sense, but it needs to be repeated: American taxpayer dollars should only benefit American citizens,” White said.
The situation at the U.S. Southern border has become a major flashpoint in the 2024 race for the presidency. According to recent Gallup polling, 42 percent of Americans describe the situation at the border as a “crisis,” with another 35 percent describing it as a “major problem.”
In the wake of a record surge in immigration, 55 percent of Americans now express interest in reducing the number of immigrants coming into the U.S. – the highest levels since the 9/11 attacks in 2001.
Among the issues driving the shift in public sentiment is heightened awareness of crimes being committed by individuals here illegally, including high profile cases like the murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley and recent gang activity by associates of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
The percentage of Americans who believe immigrants, both legal and illegal, pose a major risk to commit a crime has increased considerably in recent years.
Immigration proponents often counter the narrative around the risk of immigrant crime by pointing out that multiple studies have found that immigrants commit crime at a lower rate than the native born population.
One such study, conducted by the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, found the conviction rate for immigrants in Texas illegally was 782 per 100,000 people in 2018. On the other hand, the conviction rate for native born Americans was 1,422 per 100,000 people.
Adam Sabes
