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The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office rejected an immigration detainer by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on a criminal illegal immigrant allegedly responsible for a felony hit-and-run that resulted in the death of an 11-year-old boy on Thanksgiving morning.
In a statement on Dec. 2, the Department of Homeland Security said that it had lodged a request to hold, called a detainer, Mexican illegal Hector Balderas-Aheelor, following his arrest for a felony hit-and-run that killed 11-year-old Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz.
A spokesperson for the San Diego Sheriff’s Office told Fox News Digital it received the detainer request for Balderas-Aheelor, also known as Hector Amador Balderas, on Nov. 29. The spokesperson said that in accordance with California law, “a review of the criminal history was conducted, and the Immigration Detainer was rejected.”
They added that the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office “complies with the California Values Act” and directed Fox News Digital to an info page on the law that said, “The Sheriff’s Office does not hold individuals based on federal detainer warrants.”
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ABC San Diego reported that Balderas-Aheelor was arrested on Saturday in connection with the death of Torres De Paz in Escondido. The outlet said that the child had run into the street to retrieve a soccer ball when he was hit, after which the driver sped off. Torres De Paz died in the hospital from his injuries on Thanksgiving Day.
Baldaeras-Aheelor was previously removed from the United States four times, according to DHS.
Commenting on the case, Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said, “Thanksgiving should be a day of celebrating family and giving gratitude, but instead the family of Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz mourned this beautiful child’s death because a criminal illegal alien stole his life.”
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“Hector Balderas-Aheelor was previously removed FOUR times before he chose to commit a felony and illegally re-enter the country a fifth time,” she continued. “Now, sanctuary laws threaten to put this killer back onto California’s streets.”
McLaughlin called on California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom “to do the right thing and honor ICE’s arrest detainer.”
In response, Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for Newsom, told Fox News Digital that “nothing prohibits the federal government from doing its job in this case” and “this driver needs to be held responsible for the tragic hit and run.”
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“Unlawfully returning to the United States after deportation is a federal criminal offense and California honors federal criminal warrants,” continued Crofts-Pelayo, adding, “The federal government admits a failure to apprehend the suspect when he unlawfully entered the U.S. California law does not prevent them from acting now.”
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