Tag Archives: human rights

Georgia Native Arrested for Suspected Human Rights Violations

September 28, 2012blogBosnia, CBP, citizenship fraud, Georgia, Herzegovine, HSI, human rights, human rights violations, Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Unit, ICE, immigration fraudAlex Meyerovich

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrested a suspected human rights violator Monday, September 24, 2012, who is charged with fraudulently obtaining U.S. citizenship.

Mladen Mitrovic, 52, of Loganville, Ga., was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge E. Clayton Scofield III on federal charges that he obtained his naturalized citizenship through fraudulent omissions about his background that related to his work as a Serbian concentration camp guard.

“The Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Unit of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement continues to work with officials from Bosnia and Herzegovina to locate concentration camp guards who emigrated under false pretenses to the United States after the Bosnian War,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This defendant will now have to face many of the former Bosnian Muslim prisoners who suffered at his hand in the Trnopolje Concentration Camp.”

“HSI special agents in Atlanta, working on a tip from our special agents in Portland, Ore., were able to identify Mr. Mitrovic as a potential human rights violator responsible for the alleged abuse and torture of Muslims and Catholics at the Trnopolje Concentration Camp,” said Brock D. Nicholson, special agent in charge of HSI Atlanta. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia has shown great expertise in their aggressive prosecution of suspects accused of committing human rights violations abroad before immigrating to the United States under false pretenses.”

According to information presented in court, Mitrovic, a Bosnian native, applied to be naturalized as a United States citizen Oct. 3, 2002. In his naturalization application, Mitrovic allegedly failed to disclose that as a guard at a Serbian concentration camp during the Bosnian War, he persecuted people because of their religion, national origin and membership in a particular social group.

The charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and automatic deportation upon the completion of a sentence of imprisonment. In determining the actual sentence, the court will consider the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which are not binding, but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders.

ICE’s Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center investigates human rights violators who try to evade justice by seeking shelter in the United States, including those who have participated in war crimes and acts of genocide, torture and extrajudicial killings. These individuals may use fraudulent identities to enter the country and attempt to blend into communities in the United States.

Members of the public who have information about foreign nationals suspected of engaging in human rights abuses or war crimes are urged to call the toll-free HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or to complete its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.

To learn more about the assistance available to victims in these cases, the public should contact ICE’s confidential victim-witness toll-free number at 1-866-872-4973. Tips may be provided anonymously.

Since fiscal year 2004, ICE has arrested more than 225 individuals for human rights-related violations under various criminal and/or immigration statutes. During that same period, ICE obtained deportation orders and physically removed more than 540 known or suspected human rights violators from the United States. Currently, HSI has more than 140 active investigations and ICE is pursuing more than 1,900 leads and removal cases involving suspected human rights violators from nearly 95 different countries.

Members of the public are reminded that a defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

Former Officer Accused of Human Rights Atrocities in Bosnia Deported

May 30, 2012blogBosnia, Department of State, ERO, Herzegovina, HSI, human rights, Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center, ICE, Office of International Affairs, removal, Sarajevo, Srebrenica genocideAlex Meyerovich

A former Bosnian-Serb police commander wanted in his native country for genocide and atrocities against thousands of Bosnian Muslims was deported Wednesday, capping a successful effort by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to investigate the case and gain his removal from the United States.

Dejan Radojkovic, 61, arrived in Sarajevo the morning of May 24, 2012, via commercial aircraft under escort by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal (ERO) officers. Radojkovic was immediately turned over to Bosnian and Herzegovina law enforcement officials.

The former Las Vegas resident faces criminal charges in Bosnia and Herzegovina for his role in the Srebrenica genocide. The atrocities took place over several days in July 1995 as Bosnian Serb forces overran a contingent of United Nations peacekeepers, driving tens of thousands of Bosnian-Muslim civilians from the Srebrenica “safe area” and executing more than 7,000 Bosnian-Muslim men and boys. Authorities allege Radojkovic used his position as a commander in the Special Police Brigade to aid in carrying out the crimes. Specifically, prosecutors charge that Radojkovic and his platoon rounded up some 200
Bosnian-Muslim men in the Konjevic Polje region and transferred them to locations where they were executed.

“For the families who lost loved ones at Srebrenica, justice has been a long time coming, but they can take consolation in the fact that those responsible for this tragedy are now being held accountable for their crimes,” said ICE Director John Morton. “I applaud the outstanding work by ICE attorneys, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents, and ERO officers in bringing a successful conclusion to this case. We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure our country does not serve as a haven for human rights
violators and others who have committed heinous acts.”

Radojkovic, a native of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entered the United States in 1999. After a joint investigation by HSI and Bosnian authorities linked Radojkovic to possible war crimes, he was arrested by HSI special agents at his Las Vegas residence in January 2009. Ten months later, an immigration judge ordered Radojkovic deported on multiple grounds, including a finding that he “ordered…and/or otherwise participated in extrajudicial killing.” Radojkovic’s removal order was upheld upon appeal.

In seeking to establish Radojkovic’s role in the Srebrenica genocide, ICE worked closely with the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (in The Hague) and the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia-Herzegovina in Sarajevo.
This week’s removal is the culmination of a long-term effort by multiple domestic and overseas divisions of ICE, including HSI, ERO, the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, the Office of International Affairs and the Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center in Washington, D.C. ICE also received assistance with the case from the U.S. Department of State.

Radojkovic is the second former special police commander linked to the massacre to be targeted by ICE for enforcement action. Nedjo Ikonic, formerly of Milwaukee, Wis., was deported Jan. 19, 2010, to face genocide-related charges in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center investigates human rights violators who try to evade justice by seeking shelter in the United States, including those who have participated in war crimes and acts of genocide, torture and extrajudicial killings. These individuals may use fraudulent identities to enter the country and attempt to blend into communities in the United States. Members of the public who have information about foreign nationals suspected of engaging in human rights abuses or war crimes are urged to call the toll-free HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. Tips may be provided anonymously.

Since fiscal year 2004, ICE has arrested more than 200 individuals for human rights-related violations under various criminal and/or immigration statutes. During that same period, ICE obtained deportation orders and physically removed more than 400 known or suspected human rights violators from the United States. Currently, HSI has more than 180 active investigations and ICE is pursuing more than 1,900 leads and removal cases involving suspected human rights violators from nearly 95 different countries.

Former Leader of LPC Deported for Human Rights Violations

April 5, 2012blogdeportation, ERO, HRVWCC, HSI, human rights, ICE, Liberia, LPCAlex Meyerovich

The former leader of the Liberian Peace Council (LPC) who committed human rights
abuses during the Liberian civil war in the 1990s was deported to his native country Friday, March 30, capping an effort by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to investigate the case and win the former warlord’s removal from the United States.

George Saigbe Boley, 62, formerly of Hilton, N.Y., arrived in Monrovia, Liberia, at
approximately 7:30 p.m. GMT (3:30 p.m. EDT). Boley, the leader of the LPC during the Liberian civil war, was found by an immigration judge Feb. 6, 2012 to be removable from the United States. This was the first removal order obtained by ICE under the authorities of the Child Soldiers Accountability Act of 2008, which added the recruitment and use of child soldiers as a ground of inadmissibility to and deportability from the United States. The immigration judge with the Executive Office for Immigration Review – a component of the U.S. Department of Justice – also found Boley inadmissible based upon the
government’s charge of commission of extrajudicial killings in Liberia in the 1990s and that Boley had abandoned his lawful permanent resident status.

“George Boley’s removal is a major step in addressing the serious human rights abuses
Mr. Boley perpetrated in Liberia in the 1990s,” said ICE Director John Morton. “The United States has always welcomed refugees and those fleeing oppression, but we will not be a safe haven for human rights violators and war criminals. George Boley’s removal is the first ever U.S. deportation based on the use of child soldiers in war, and represents the
culmination of extensive efforts by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers and ICE attorneys to vindicate the rights of those who suffered at Mr. Boley’s hands during the Liberian Civil War.”

Various organizations have reported that the LPC engaged in serious human rights abuses
against the civilian population. The 1995, the U.S. Department of State report on Human Rights Practices in Liberia documented credible reports that Boley authorized the extrajudicial executions of seven of his soldiers in 1995. According to witnesses who testified before Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), in 1994 the LPC burned dozens of captives and village inhabitants accused of witchcraft activities in a Liberian village. Other TRC witnesses also testified that in 1995, the LPC massacred 27
inhabitants in an attack on a village – ordering them to lie down before they slit their throats with cutlasses and raping the women before they killed them.

The investigation and deportation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations
(HSI) and Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in Buffalo. ICE’s Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) Office of Chief Counsel Buffalo handled the administrative
removal proceedings leading to the immigration judge’s decision. These offices were supported by ICE’s Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center (HRVWCC), OPLA’s Human Rights Law Section and HSI Paris.

The HRVWCC investigates human rights violators, including those who have participated in war crimes and acts of genocide, torture, extrajudicial killings, and the recruitment and use of child soldiers, who try to evade justice by seeking shelter in the United States. These individuals may assume fraudulent identities to enter the country, seeking to blend into
communities inside the United States. Members of the public who have information about foreign nationals suspected of engaging in human rights abuses or war crimes are urged to call the ICE tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or to complete the agency’s online tip form. To learn more about the assistance available to victims in these cases, the public should contact ICE’s confidential victim-witness toll-free number at 1-866-872-4973.
Tips may be provided anonymously.

Since fiscal year 2004, ICE has arrested more than 200 individuals for human rights-related violations under various criminal and/or immigration statutes. During that same period, ICE obtained deportation orders and physically removed more than 400 known or suspected human rights violators from the United States. Currently, HSI has more than 200 active investigations and ICE is pursuing more than 1,900 leads and removal cases involving suspected human rights violators from nearly 95 different countries.

El Salvadoran Human Rights Violator Removed by ICE

March 29, 2012blogERO, HRVWCC, HSI, human rights, ICE, UN, UN Security CouncilAlex Meyerovich

A former El Salvadoran military officer who is alleged to have committed human rights violations by the United Nations (UN) was removed from the United States by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers.

On Friday, Mar. 23, El Salvadoran national Carlos Napoleón Medina-Garay, 61, was
removed by ICE special air charter flight to San Salvador, El Salvador.

A 1993 UN Security Council report of the Commission on the Truth for El Salvador accuses Medina-Garay of committing human rights violations while serving as a captain in the El Salvadoran military. According to the report, beginning March 3, 1981, Medina-Garay and the soldiers under his command were part of a campaign in northern El Junquillo canton, Morazán Department, El Salvador that executed men, women and children. The commission found that Medina-Garay ordered the executions.

“His continued presence in the country would be an insult to those who have sought U.S. protection from human rights violators.” ERO Washington Field Office Director Enrique
M. Lucero. “ERO officers are committed to ensuring these types of cases are our top priority.”

On Jan.17, 2012, ICE issued a Notice to Appear charging Medina-Garay as inadmissible to the U.S. He was taken into custody by ERO officers and ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents at his home in Woodbridge, Va., that same day.

Medina-Garay’s various applications for benefits under the Immigration and Nationalization Act were denied. His most recent application was voluntarily withdrawn and he was ordered by an immigration judge the leave the United States.

The investigation was conducted by HSI and he was removed by ERO in Washington, DC.
ICE’s Office of the Chief Counsel Arlington handled the administrative removal proceedings leading to the immigration judge’s decision. The investigation and removal was supported by ICE’s Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center (HRVWCC), the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor Human Rights Law Section and HSI Attaché El Salvador.

ICE routinely uses special air charters to transport aliens who have final orders of removal from an immigration judge. Staffed by ERO officers, these air charters enable the agency to repatriate large groups of deportees in an efficient, expeditious and humane manner.

HRVWCC investigates human rights violators, including those who have participated in
war crimes and acts of genocide, torture, extrajudicial killings, and the recruitment and use of child soldiers, who try to evade justice by seeking shelter in the United States.
These individuals may assume fraudulent identities to enter the country, seeking to blend into communities inside the United States. Members of the public who have information about foreign nationals suspected of engaging in human rights abuses or war crimes are urged to call the ICE tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or to complete the agency’s online tip form. To learn more about the assistance available to victims in these cases, the public should contact ICE’s confidential victim-witness toll-free number at 1-866-872-4973.

HSI has more than 200 active investigations and is pursuing over 1,900 leads and
removal cases involving suspects from approximately 95 different countries. These cases are predominantly focused on Central and South America, Haiti, the former Yugoslavia and Africa. They represent cases in various stages of investigation, prosecution or removal proceedings.