A high school student Reseda who was arrested by immigration agents on August 8 and who was detained in a detention center told a former teacher that he had heard the masked men who seized him between them that they would receive $ 1,500 for his arrest, said the instructor.
Tuesday afternoon, activists and educators rallied outside the headquarters of the unified school district of Los Angeles to call for the immediate release of Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz, 18, who lives with his family in Van Nuys.
Guerrero-Cruz spoke for a long time on Sunday with Lizette Becerra, his former professor of development of the English language, who visited her on Sunday at the Federal Adelanto detention center.
Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz, a pupil of charter high school, was taken by immigration agents by walking his dog.
(Rita Silva)
During the rally, Becerra said that the student had described to him how he heard the agents who boasted of the money they would receive to capture him. Guerrero-Cruz told Becerra that the agents said it was “luck for him, for them, they could have a drink this weekend,” she said, telling his conversation with the student.
“So, my question is, who are the people who took it?” Asked Becerra. “So yes, I fear that they are not bonus hunters.”
When asked if the complaint concerning a payment of $ 1,500 for the student’s arrest was exact or if the ministry employs premium hunters, the US Department of Internal Security replied:
“The statements that DHS uses private entrepreneurs or” bonus hunters “to make arrests are false.” The ministry said it was also false that his officers acted in any way. A spokesperson, in a written response, did not directly deal with the allegation concerning a payment of $ 1,500.
Professor Lizette Becerra speaks during a rally for her former student. She spoke to him at the Adelanto detention center where he was detained.
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
In 2022, a trial in California ended with a regulation which prohibited US immigration officials and the application of customs to use private entrepreneurs to stop immigrants for expulsion in state prisons and prisons or when they release the guard.
The Department of Internal Security noted on Tuesday that Guerrero-Cruz would be in violation of the Federal Immigration Act.
“Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz, an illegal foreigner in Chile, has exceeded his visa over two years old, abusing the Visa renunciation program in which he entered the United States, which forced him to leave the United States on March 15, 2023,” said the ministry’s statement.
A law firm representing the family refused to discuss the legal status of Guerrero-Cruz and his family, including the nature of his original documents to enter the country. Lawyers have also not discussed the steps, if necessary, that the family had taken to stay in the United States and how many family members are at risk of expulsion.
Teachers, community members and students organize a rally for the Senior of Reseda Charter High School Benjamin Marcelo Guerrero-Cruz at the registered office of Lausd.
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
According to a Gofundme page created for the family, Guerrero-Cruz has 5-month-old twin brothers and a 6-year-old brother.
In an interview with The Times, Becerra said that Guerrero-Cruz had told him that he had a message to share: “Tell them we come here to make a better life and that we do good and we are treated as criminals. I am not a criminal. We are here to work and go to school. I want to finish high school.”
The Department of Internal Security said that Guerrero-Cruz was finally responsible for what had happened to him.
“Guerrero -Cruz never had to be arrested – he made several choices that led to this,” the statement said. “It could have taken advantage of the generous offer to obtain $ 1,000 and a free flight to the self-drilling now via the Home CBP application. We encourage each person here illegally to take advantage of this offer. … Otherwise, you will be stopped and expelled without a chance to come back. ”
The student recounts his arrest
Guerrero-Cruz told Becerra that he thought it was sure enough to walk the dog on the morning of Friday, August 8. He didn’t bother to get dressed completely,, Go out in pajamas and slippers.
But he was surprised, he said through Becerra, by the sudden appearance, around 7:50 am, over fifteen men and about three SUVs near the corner of Sepulveda Boulevard and Clark Street in Van Nuy. They caught him and started calling him by a name he said he had not recognized.
The educators Claudia Rojas, Center, and Lizette Becerra, on the right, kiss after the comments of Becerra during the rally. Rojas and Becerra worked with Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz when he attended the Contreras learning complex, before the student and his family moved to the San Fernando valley.
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
He protested that he was not the person they were looking for. They said they should make him fingerprints to confirm his identity – something that he said has never happened, according to Becerra.
The young person also alleges that men have not identified or showed a mandate. Several wore jackets that said “immigration police”.
A man withdrew the dog’s pass and then stamped the floor until the dog fled, said Becerra, telling his conversation with the student.
The story of what happened with the dog was checked Tuesday by a neighbor, Valerie T., who said he saw the end of the game and who then caught the dog and returned it to the family.
Guerrero-Cruz told Becerra that he did not remember any agency insignia carried by the men who took him and who spoke of the $ 1,500. Later, however, these men met agents who were clearly identifiable by the American immigration badge and the application of customs.
Homeland Security responded largely to the details of the account of Guerrero-Cruz supporters.
“The allegations concerning CBP officers are false, and these are lies that contribute to violence against our officers,” the statement said. “Our officers acted in a professional manner throughout the game. Guerrero-Cruz tied the dog to a tree after his mother refused to come and pick it up. Under normal conditions, the CBP could call for animal control and wait for them to help, but due to the increase in aggressions, the obstruction of operations, and rhetoric (such as the lie told here on their conduct) in the region of the, they are not. “.
With the exception of an unexplained trip to a detention center in Santa Ana, Guerrero-Cruz was detained in downtown for the first week-which included last Thursday, when his classmates began the new school year.
Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz was active in the Rotc program of the school navy.
(Rita Silva)
As applied by Becerra, in the installation of the, Guerrero-Cruz had no choice but to stay in pajamas and sandals, unable to shower or brush your teeth for five days. In a small cell with five or six men, the only place with room to sleep was next to the toilet – and he had to move every time someone wanted to use it.
Guerrero-Cruz was moved to Adelanto on Friday evening and gave clothes and was able to take a shower on Saturday morning. It is in a cell of four people and sleeps in a bunk bed.
Homeland Security did not respond to allegations concerning the conditions in the installation of the, focusing on its description of the conditions in Adelanto:
“All detainees receive appropriate meals, quality water, covers, medical treatments and have the possibility of communicating with family members and lawyers. Ice has higher standards of detention than most American prisons that hold real American citizens. ”
The declaration continued: “These are the best health care that many foreigners have received in all their lives. Meals are certified by dietitists. Ensuring the safety, security and well-being of individuals in our care is an absolute priority for ice. ”
Becerra said that Guerrero-Cruz was not complaining about Adelanto and that he had received clothes and shoes to wear when she visited him.
A favorite student
Guerrero-Cruz, 18, is older than some seniors because he arrived in the United States at the age of high school and, like many newcomers, was assigned to the 9th year because he had the task of learning English and managing courses.
Because they usually have to catch up on the school level, these students can stay in the school system until the age of 22, said Becerra.
Becerra taught the Guerrero-Cruz recently arrived in the fall of 2023 at the Contreras learning complex, just west of the city center.
“He was memorable. Very talkative. Sweet,” recalls Becerra. “He was pulling his chair next to me and spoke.”
The boy then moved to the San Fernando valley with his family. Becerra also went to another school, where she is an educational coach.
Guerrero-Cruz liked to play football.
A friend, identified as Ronny C., said in a statement that the young man’s football team was devastated by his sudden disappearance: “On the field, he was solid in rock – has always presented himself, worked hard and could be counted over a week after week. Outside the field, he brought a coherence, a heart and a silent resistance and a silent resistance that improved the way of everything. ”
Young people have also become active in the school’s Rotc program.
“It was really impatient to graduate. New arrivals are some of the most working students I have ever had,” said Becerra. “The fact that he stayed in school – I was really proud of him. It is not easy to do it as a newcomer who does not speak English.
“It’s heartbreaking to see him in there,” said Becerra. “He is agitated. He doesn’t want to be there, obviously. He is very anxious and nervous. He was trying not to cry when I left.”
