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🇯🇲 Jamaica /Culture & Society

US deports Cuban man accused of immigration fraud

From Jamaica Observer · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Official statement Outcome reported
  • ICE says it deported Fernando Armando Valdes Perez, a Cuban and Guatemalan citizen, after alleging he fraudulently obtained US lawful permanent resident status.
  • The agency alleges Valdes acted as a Cuban intelligence asset targeting exile and dissident communities, and says he concealed those ties from US immigration authorities.
  • ICE arrested him at Miami International Airport during an operation involving the FBI and Customs and Border Protection before placing him in removal proceedings.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement says it deported a Cuban man after investigators determined that he concealed his affiliation with the Cuban government to obtain lawful permanent resident status.

ICE identified the man as Fernando Armando Valdes Perez, 61, of Kendall, Florida. He also holds Guatemalan citizenship. Agents arrested him at Miami International Airport on July 10 during an immigration enforcement operation involving ICE, the FBI and US Customs and Border Protection.

Investigators determined Valdes was a Cuban intelligence asset tasked with infiltrating and reporting on Cuban exile and dissident communities in Latin America and the United States as early as the mid-1990s.

· US Immigration and Customs EnforcementICE described the alleged role that led to Valdes’s arrest and deportation.

“Investigators determined Valdes was a Cuban intelligence asset tasked with infiltrating and reporting on Cuban exile and dissident communities in Latin America and the United States as early as the mid-1990s,” ICE said. The agency alleged that Valdes gained the trust of the late anti-Castro dissident Luis Posada Carriles and stayed close to other prominent Cuban and Cuban-American figures in South Florida until his arrest.

Individuals who conceal ties to foreign intelligence services and exploit our immigration system pose a serious threat to the integrity of that system and to our national security.

· Matthew EllistonThe ICE Miami field office director characterized the alleged conduct and its implications.

According to ICE, Valdes knowingly hid his position and ties to the Cuban government when he applied for and received lawful permanent resident status, deliberately deceiving US immigration authorities. “Individuals who conceal ties to foreign intelligence services and exploit our immigration system pose a serious threat to the integrity of that system and to our national security,” said Matthew Elliston, director of ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations Miami Field Office.

“ICE will continue working with our federal partners to identify, arrest and remove those who obtain immigration benefits through fraud,” Elliston added. Valdes entered removal proceedings after his arrest and has since been deported from the United States.

ICE will continue working with our federal partners to identify, arrest and remove those who obtain immigration benefits through fraud.

· Matthew EllistonElliston said ICE would continue joint enforcement against immigration fraud.
About this summary

Originally published by Jamaica Observer in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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