Federal immigration authorities arrested a Cuban national in Newport News, Virginia, earlier this month after officers allegedly discovered cocaine, fentanyl pills, oxycodone, and other narcotics during a post-arrest search.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested Eduardo Perez-Legra on May 4. Authorities said officers recovered 19.5 grams of cocaine, 101 oxycodone pills, five fentanyl pills, and 27 individually packaged suboxone sublingual films following the arrest.
Federal officials said Perez-Legra has an extensive criminal history that includes four felony drug trafficking convictions and two additional felony convictions tied to cocaine possession.
DHS said Perez-Legra became a lawful permanent resident in 2004 but later became subject to removal proceedings after felony convictions in 2011. An immigration judge issued a final order of removal in May 2012, according to the agency, though he remained in the United States after being released during the Obama administration.
Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis criticized Virginia’s immigration enforcement policies following the arrest, arguing that restrictions on cooperation between state agencies and federal immigration authorities have made enforcement more difficult.
“Another day, another criminal illegal alien arrested in Governor Abigail Spanberger’s sanctuary Virginia,” Bis said in a statement released by DHS. She added that Perez-Legra had previously been convicted of drug trafficking offenses before his most recent arrest.
DHS also pointed to executive actions signed earlier this year by Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger that ended certain forms of state cooperation with ICE, including the termination of 287(g) agreements. Those federal agreements allow trained local and state officers to perform certain immigration enforcement functions in coordination with ICE.
The department additionally referenced several recent cases involving foreign nationals arrested or charged with violent crimes in Virginia, including homicide, child exploitation, assault, and rape-related offenses.
Among those cases cited by DHS was the arrest of Walvin Victor Hugo Garcia, a Guatemalan national charged in Fairfax County with offenses involving a child under the age of 13. Federal officials also referenced the case of Israel Christopher Flores-Ortiz, an El Salvadoran national convicted earlier this year on multiple assault and battery charges involving underage girls at a Virginia high school.
Other cases highlighted by DHS included an Arlington County attempted rape case involving Guatemalan national Luzvin Orvando Garcia Moran and the March arrest of Misael Lopez Gomez, who was charged in Fairfax County in connection with the death of his 3-month-old daughter.
Perez-Legra remains in federal custody. DHS has not released additional information regarding pending immigration proceedings or possible new criminal charges connected to the narcotics allegedly recovered during the arrest.
