Doral, city with most Venezuelans in US, names police chief with record of immigration arrests

Doral, Florida, recognized as the U.S. city with the largest Venezuelan community, has appointed Matthew Castillo as its new police chief. Castillo previously held the same position in Miami Springs, a nearby municipality where he was noted for conducting a significant number of immigration arrests.

Castillo is set to assume leadership of Doral's police force in mid-June, according to local officials who spoke with the Miami Herald. However, Doral Mayor Christi Fraga has asserted that the appointment will not alter the city's approach to immigration matters. "We are not going to change any of our principles or practices at all," Fraga told the newspaper.

Doral has a population exceeding 81,000 residents, a substantial portion of whom are of Venezuelan origin. While the city has signed the federal 287(g) agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), empowering local police to engage in immigration enforcement, it has not officially reported any immigration-related arrests.

In contrast, Miami Springs, where Castillo will continue as police chief until his transition to Doral, ranks seventh among Florida municipalities for immigration arrests, with a total of 16 since August. Within Miami-Dade County, Miami Springs is the second-highest city for such arrests, despite having fewer than 15,000 inhabitants.

Castillo, however, clarified that these interventions were not the result of immigration sweeps but rather stemmed from broader criminal investigations. "When officers respond to criminal incidents, whether they involve human trafficking, drug trafficking, fraud, vehicle theft, fugitives, or other criminal matters, it is natural for immigration-related encounters to occur as part of that process," he stated.

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No vamos a cambiar en absoluto ninguno de nuestros principios ni prácticas