Federal immigration agents arrested a terrorist gangster in Michigan’s Shelby Township on Friday, marking at least the fifth member of a designated terrorist group nabbed in Michigan this year.
“On Friday, Detroit Station agents, with local law enforcement, arrested an illegal alien and known member of the violent Foreign Terrorist Organization Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) in Shelby Township, MI,” Chief Patrol Agent John Morris posted to X on Monday. “The illegal alien and gang member from El Salvador will be processed for #deportation.”
On Friday, Detroit Station agents, with local law enforcement, arrested an illegal alien and known member of the violent Foreign Terrorist Organization Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) in Shelby Township, MI. The illegal alien and gang member from El Salvador will be processed for… pic.twitter.com/ZK37yy8JCz
— Chief Patrol Agent John R.Morris (@USBPChiefDTM) December 8, 2025
Shelby Township Police conducted a traffic stop around 12:13 p.m. on Friday near the area of West Utica Road and Dequindre Road, and the driver presented an El Salvadorian identification card, according to the Shelby Township Police Department.
A records check through dispatch identified the driver as Walter Ceron Linares and flagged him as a member of MS-13 with instructions to contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The FBI also confirmed Linares’ identity and he was arrested and transferred to U.S. Border Patrol custody, Shelby Township Police wrote in a Facebook post.
“Our top priority is keeping Shelby Township safe. We work every day to identify and stop individuals involved in violent crime, organized criminal activity, or any threat of terrorism before it reaches our community,” Shelby Township Police Chief Robert Shelide said in a statement.
“Through proactive policing, strong partnerships with state and federal agencies, and constant vigilance, we remain committed to ensuring that those who intend to harm others will find no place to operate in Shelby Township,” he said. “Our goal is to keep Shelby Township safe; our residents deserve nothing less!”
The Shelby Township arrest is at least the fifth involving members of a federally designated terrorist organization in the Mitten so far in 2025.
In January, Ricardo Jesus Prada Vasquez, a 32-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela and confirmed member of the brutal Tren de Aragua gang, was arrested after he crossed the Ambassador Bridge and attempted to reenter the United States through the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel.
A month later a judge ordered Vasquez removed from the U.S. and he was sent to El Salvador on March 15.
Around the same time, two Venezuelan nationals, including one Tren de Aragua gang member, were arrested for an attempted “snatch-and-grab” at a Nordstrom Rack store at the Great Lakes Crossing Outlet Mall, The Detroit News reports.
U.S Border Patrol Chief Michael W. Banks noted in a post on X that one of the illegal immigrants arrested is “wanted for kidnapping and torture in Colorado and is linked to the notorious Tren de Aragua gang” and would face criminal charges for “willfully refusing to depart the U.S.”
Dangerous Fugitive Caught!
Yesterday, in Detroit, MI, USBP agents and Auburn Hills PD responded to a shoplifting call that escalated into the takedown of a dangerous fugitive! pic.twitter.com/UWJFHxlOKr
— Chief Michael W. Banks (@USBPChief) March 13, 2025
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Kleiber Siso Balza, 25, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, in Traverse City on July 4, along with three other men in the country illegally.
Balza, also member of the Tren De Aragua gang, had an active warrant from Virginia for possession of burglary tools and a pending larceny case in Florida, according to ICE.
“Tren De Aragua is known to engage in sex trafficking, debt bondage, drug trafficking, and murder to advance their interests,” ICE HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey said in a statement at the time. “We’re thankful to have the assistance of our TSA, Federal Air Marshals and IRS partners in executing this important mission.”
Just two days after Balza’s arrest, U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Detroit Station arrested two illegal immigrants from El Salvador in Sterling Heights, including one who told agents he’s a member of MS-13 gang who spent two decades in a Salvadoran prison for the murder of a rival gang member.
On Monday, the Department of Homeland Security launched a new webpage to highlight the “Worst of the Worst” arrested by immigration agents amid the largest deportation effort in U.S. history.
The website allows visitors to search through some of the hundreds of thousands of criminal illegal immigrations arrested across all 50 states, with criminal histories that include homicide, assault, rape, drug trafficking, child molestation, cruelty toward a child, battery, armed robbery, and other offenses.
“This new Worst of the Worst webpage allows every American to see for themselves the criminal illegal aliens that we are arresting, what crimes they committed, and what communities we removed them from. This is all about transparency and showing results,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. “As the media whitewashes the facts, day in and day out, our brave men and women of ICE risk their lives for the American people. Americans don’t have to rely on the press for this information – with this transparent tool, they can see for themselves what public safety threats were lurking in their neighborhoods and communities.”
