Governor Glenn Youngkin defended the rapid deportation without trial of an alleged MS-13 gang member arrested in Northern Virginia late last month.
The defendant’s gun charge was dropped Wednesday, but the governor said that was part of the plan.
“The charges from the Department of Justice under [Attorney General Pam Bondi] were dropped so that the person can be deported immediately and get out of this country and go back to prison in El Salvador,” Youngkin told Fox News Thursday morning about the ongoing saga of Henrry Josue Villatoro Santos.
According to court documents Villatoro Santos was under surveillance since a burglary reported at his home last summer. A warrant for his arrest was issued and he was taken into custody, along with a silenced pistol, in late March. Details from that warrant are not yet public.
A nationally televised press conference announcing his arrest included Youngkin calling the defendant, "one of the top leaders of MS-13."
"Very violent crimes," Bondi said, describing allegations against the then-unnamed defendant. "Anything you can associate with MS-13, he was the leader over it.”
Youngkin has since echoed these statements as grounds for his challenge to so-called "sanctuary cities," localities he feels do not fully cooperate with ICE.
"Virginia is not a sanctuary state and we are working like crazy to sweep up these illegal immigrants who are committing violent crimes," he told Fox Thursday.
Villatoro Santos faced charges related to being in the country illegally while possessing a firearm, but the federal prosecutor on the case filed to dismiss those charges Wednesday. A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's Office said they had no comment on the matter Wednesday afternoon.
Youngkin’s comments come as President Donald Trump has sought to remove undocumented people at breakneck pace, often with little or no judicial review.
Under the last administration, violent undocumented offenders were targeted and removed, but David Bier with the Cato Institute’s immigration program said Trump is doing things differently.
“This administration’s approach is to arrest whoever they can, which sometimes includes people who are public safety threats but often does not,” Bier said in an interview with Radio IQ.
Some reviews of those targeted by Trump show as many as 90% of those deported had no criminal history; Villatoro Santos had a weed charge in 2019. He lost his driver's license for 6 months and paid $170 in fees over the matter.
Monica Sarmiento, head of the of the Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rights fears the public nature of Villatoro Santos arrest and quick dismissal may suggest the worst: "maybe they don’t have as much evidence as they touted to the public."
The only mention of Villatoro Santos' alleged gang affiliation in court documents included officers' observation of "indicia of MS-13 association in the garage bedroom."
"We should all be very worried about the tactics of the Youngkin and Trump administrations," Sarmiento added. "Everyone is entitled to due process according to the latest ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court."
That ruling said, "detainees subject to removal orders under the [Alien Enemies Act] are entitled to notice and an opportunity to challenge their removal," however the nature and timeline for such review was not defined and is expected to be part of future litigation.
Possession of a controlled substance like weed could carry with it a removal order; however, no mention of an existing order was in court documents. Bier said, considering the criminal nature of the existing filings, that's not a surprise, and there's no public database to know whether Villatoro Santos was already facing deportation.
Still, those familiar with immigration proceedings believe evidence collected during the search of Villatoro Santos' home, including the firearm, could be used against him in future removal hearings.
Bier and the Cato institute are known for being fiscally conservative, and arguably the deportation of Villatoro Santos without trial would save federal resources. But Bier said it’s still a precedent the country should be wary of.
“We should care more about freedom and due process and go through the trouble of actually proving crimes against the people who they’re trying to remove,” he said.
In additional court filings, a lawyer for Villatoro Santos asked a judge to deny the government’s motion to dismiss the case, fearing he’d be deported if the criminal case is dropped.
"The undersigned is keenly aware of the unusual nature of this motion. But these are unusual times," defense attorney Muhammad Elsayed wrote, pointing to statements made by Youngkin and others in late March. "The substantial risks involved in his anticipated transfer to the custody of ICE officials, and the very high-profile nature of his arrest and the allegations against him, there is good cause to delay the entry of any order of dismissal in order to allow Mr. Villatoro Santos an opportunity to seek the assistance of immigration counsel and to seek any further appropriate relief."
Those familiar with the federal criminal process said a judge is unlikely to deny the government's motion to dismiss. A hearing that motion, itself a rarity, is scheduled for Alexandria federal court next week.
Whether that gives Villatoro Santos enough time to get a lawyer for the immigration dispute that follows remains to be seen.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
