EXCLUSIVE: A Biden-appointed federal judge could decide Wednesday morning that a plane carrying illegal immigrants convicted of serious crimes to South Sudan has to return.
The plane is carrying eight men – all of whom convicted of crimes ranging from homicide to robbery, according to details exclusively provided by the Department of Homeland Security. The DHS unveiled details of the crimes after U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy threatened to order the return of the migrants at a Wednesday hearing.
“No country on earth wanted to accept [the migrants] because their crimes are so uniquely monstrous and barbaric,” Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said at a press conference Wednesday. “These heinous individuals have terrorized American streets for too long.”
“While we are fully compliant with the law and court orders, it is absurd for a district judge to try to dictate the foreign policy and national security of the United States of America,” McLaughlin said.
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Thongxay Nilakout, a Laos citizen who was convicted of first-degree murder and robbery and was sentenced to life behind bars, is also on the flight. He was arrested in January by ICE. Mexican citizen Jesus Munoz-Gutierrez is convicted of second-degree murder, and was taken into ICE custody earlier this month.
Dian Peter Domach of South Sudan is convicted of a DUI, “possession of burglar’s tools and possession of defaced firearm; sentenced to 18 months confinement” and “robbery and possession of a firearm; sentenced to 8 years confinement.” He was arrested by ICE earlier this month.
Two Burmese citizens, Kyaw Mya and Nyo Myint, are also headed to the African nation on the flight. Mya is convicted of “Lascivious Acts with a Child-Victim less than 12 years of age.” He was sentenced to 10 years behind bars, but he was paroled after four years. Myint is convicted of “first-degree sexual assault involving a victim mentally and physically incapable of resisting” and faced 12 years behind bars. He was also charged with “aggravated assault-nonfamily strongarm.” Both were arrested by ICE in February.
Vietnamese citizen Tuan Thanh Phan, a citizen of Vietnam is convicted of “first-degree murder and second-degree assault.”
DHS officials noted at Wednesday’s briefing that the home countries of each of the illegal immigrants refused to take them back to their home soil. The migrants remain in DHS custody, the officials added.
Murphy, a Biden appointee, ruled on Tuesday night that the Trump administration must maintain custody of the migrants in case he rules their removal unlawful, and they must be transferred back to the U.S.
Lawyers for illegal immigrants from Myanmar, also called Burma, and Vietnam accused the Trump administration of illegally deporting their clients to third-party countries. They argue the deportations violated Murphy’s previous court order mandating that migrants be granted “meaningful opportunity” to establish that sending them to a third country would make them unsafe.
Murphy previously found that any plans to deport people to Libya without notice would “clearly” violate his ruling regarding third-party deportations, which also applies to people who have otherwise exhausted their legal appeals.
