USCIS Helps Federal Partners Arrest Self-Confessed MS-13 Member
Published May 19, 2026
USCIS assisted ICE in arresting Jose Calles Henriquez, a 24-year-old illegal alien from El Salvador who admitted to being an MS-13 gang member. He was taken into custody when he appeared at a Long Island USCIS office to apply for lawful permanent resident status as a Special Immigrant Juvenile.
Key points
- Calles Henriquez was arrested on May 8 by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations.
- He was charged with illegal entry and is now in ICE custody facing removal proceedings.
- USCIS screening identified him as an MS-13 member and public safety threat, prompting agency officials to alert HSI.
- He allegedly entered the United States illegally in 2013 by crossing the Rio Grande near Hidalgo, Texas.
- USCIS previously released a report describing fraud and national security risks within the Special Immigrant Juvenile program.
- By law, the SIJ program has no criminal history bars or good moral character requirements for approval.
Who is affected
This affects individuals applying for Special Immigrant Juvenile status and attorneys handling such cases.
What to do
Applicants and attorneys should be aware that USCIS is increasing scrutiny of SIJ applications for potential fraud or security concerns.
Full text
The complete official text was archived on this site on 2026-10-13. It stays available here even if the source link changes or is removed.
Release Date
05/19/2026
NEW YORK – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services played a critical role in the arrest of Jose Calles Henriquez, 24, an illegal alien from El Salvador and self-confessed MS-13 gang member. Calles Henriquez was arrested on May 8 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Transnational Crime Task Force and ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations. He was charged with entering the country illegally.
“Under the Biden administration, criminals and gang members masquerading as Special Immigrant Juveniles were allowed to stay in this country, secure work permits, and threaten the safety of the American people,” said USCIS spokesman Zach Kahler. “Those days are over. Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Mullin, USCIS will use all available resources to detect and arrest those who pose a threat to our way of life.”
USCIS’ rigorous screening and vetting identified Calles Henriquez as a member of MS-13 gang and flagged him as a public safety threat. USCIS officers promptly alerted HSI. The arrest happened when Calles Henriquez showed up to an appointment at a Long Island-area USCIS office to apply for lawful permanent resident status as a Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ). Calles Henriquez is now in ICE custody and has been placed in removal proceedings. According to the allegations, Calles Henriquez entered the United States illegally in 2013 by crossing the Rio Grande on a raft near Hidalgo, Texas. At the time, he was issued a notice to appear before an immigration judge by Border Patrol.
Last year, USCIS released a report (PDF, 2.69 MB) about rampant fraud and significant national security risks of the SIJ program. Congress first established the SIJ program in 1990 and has amended it several times to allow young illegal aliens, whom a juvenile court has determined cannot reunify with one or both parents due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment, to apply for SIJ classification and lawful permanent resident status and have an eventual path to U.S. citizenship. By law, there are no criminal bars or good moral character requirements for SIJ petition approval.
HSI and USCIS’ Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate from Long Island investigated the case.
For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit uscis.gov or follow us on X, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn.
05/19/2026
Original title: USCIS Assists Federal Partners in Arrest of MS-13 Gang Member
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This summary was produced with AI from the official announcement. Only the official source is authoritative.