ICE nabs 2 fugitives, 4 other illegal immigrants in Santa Fe

Kate Nash | The New Mexican

4/7/2008 - 4/8/08

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested six undocumented immigrants in two Santa Fe locations last week, an ICE spokeswoman said.

As part of Operation Return to Sender, agents were searching for two fugitives, said spokeswoman Leticia Zamarripa. "Four (of the arrested) were illegal aliens who our officers encountered while looking for fugitives," she said.

The others were fugitives, she said, people who "almost always have a final order of removal or who didn't show up to a hearing," she said.

Two nonfugitives were arrested outside the Salvadoran restaurant Red Enchilada, and four others were arrested elsewhere in Santa Fe, Zamarripa said. She didn't have information on the other arrest location.

The people arrested outside the restaurant didn't work there, said Raul Lopez, who owns the restaurant. He had seen them in the past as customers cashing checks, which is also part of his business.

Lopez said he heard those who were arrested were taken to El Paso for processing. ICE used to take immigrant detainees to the Regional Correctional Center in Albuquerque, but no longer places immigrants there after a series of complaints by immigrant lawyers about the conditions at the jail.

Lopez said the ICE agents treated him respectfully and showed him photos of people they were looking for.

Still, he said, "everyone was surprised when they showed up."

The immigrants were all between the ages of 20 and 40, Zamarripa said.

The two fugitives the agents were looking for are from Guatemala, while the nonfugitives are from Mexico. The names of the arrested immigrants were not available, Zamarripa said.

Elsa Lopez, a community organizer at Somos Un Pueblo Unido, said the group is still trying to gather more information on the people who were detained. "We're very concerned because we don't know who they were. Two or three members of our community just disappeared," she said, referring to the people arrested outside the restaurant.

In the aftermath of the arrests, some immigrants are afraid to leave home, Raul Lopez said. "They are afraid to go out, not just here (the restaurant), but anywhere," he said.

Contact Kate Nash at 986-3036 or knash@sfnewmexican.com.