An illegal immigrant from Cuba with multiple prior convictions is in federal custody after spending decades evading deportation due to relaxed sanctuary city policies, federal authorities announced Tuesday.
Eledoro Valenzuela Rodriguez was taken into custody from the Miami-Dade Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Florida last month, according to officials.
At the time, Rodriguez was awaiting trial on charges of cocaine possession with intent to sell, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and trespassing, officials said.
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He previously had a final removal order lodged against him in 1980, but remained in the United States after “lenient sentences from sanctuary states New York and Maryland allowed this serial offender to keep preying on innocent people,” ICE said in a statement.
“Sanctuary policies protect criminals like Valenzuela Rodriguez and enable them to prey on generations of innocent Americans,” ICE Director Todd Lyons said.
ICE did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Authorities said Rodriguez “amassed numerous convictions and charges,” including arrests for possession of controlled substances, marijuana possession, dealing cocaine, weapon possession and firearm possession by a convicted felon.
Despite the litany of charges and past convictions, Rodriguez was released from jail multiple times while living in sanctuary cities, federal authorities said.
“These policies don’t make communities safer,” Lyons added. “They make enforcement more difficult and force federal officers into more dangerous — and more public — situations. ICE will continue to enforce the law, regardless of local politics.”
It was not immediately clear if Rodriquez had retained an attorney following his arrest.
