Feds subpoena NYC for data on four immigrants charged with crimes, including Queens slaying suspect, escalating war with sanctuary cities
By Cathy Burke
[ First published by nydailynews.com on January 18, 2020 I Photo caption: Henry Lucero, acting deputy executive associate director for ICE’s enforcement and removal operations courtesy of Astrid Galvan/AP Photo]
Federal immigration authorities subpoenaed city Correction Department officials for information four foreign nationals — including the suspect charged in the murder and sexual abuse of a 92-year-old Queens woman — ramping up the conflict between federal officials and the city’s sanctuary policy.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement — the Homeland Security agency responsible for arresting and deporting people in the U.S. illegally — could use the subpoenas issued Friday to force the Correction Department to release information about Reeaz Khan, 21, an undocumented immigrant accused in the slaying and sexual abuse of Maria Fuertes, 92, of South Richmond Hill.
If the city doesn’t hand over the information on Khan and the other three suspects, it could face federal fines.
The city has failed to cooperate with ICE’s previous requests to detain illigal immigrants charged with crimes, said Henry Lucero, acting deputy executive associate director for ICE’s enforcement and removal operations.
The subpoenas are “different from what we’ve done in the past,” Lucero told the Daily News. He said the sanctuary policies like New York’s are “making cities more dangerous.”