Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the illegal immigrant accused of setting a woman on fire in New York City will not be turned over to Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) because of the city’s sanctuary policy.

“I went to the Coney Island subway station where Debrina Kawam was set on fire and killed by an illegal alien. ICE lodged an immigration detainer with the NYC Department of Corrections to take this depraved alien into custody. Because of current sanctuary city policy, the corrections department has indicated it will NOT honor the detainer,” Noem said.

“This is disgusting. New York politicians are allowing the murder of their own citizens. NY Governor Hochul should impose an emergency suspension of sanctuary protection by executive order NOW,” she added.

WATCH:

“Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, 33, a citizen of Guatemala, faces murder and arson charges for the December 2024 killing of Debrina Kawam, 57,” The Post Millennial stated.

From The Post Millennial:

Zapeta-Calil will face the Courts in the jurisdiction where he allegedly committed the crime. However, Zapeta-Calil being remanded to ICE custody would make it easier for him to be deported after serving a jail sentence if he were to be convicted on charges, per the Daily Mail.

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Local law enforcement is prohibited from collaborating with immigration authorities to detain noncitizens in custody until they can be processed for deportation proceedings, according to sanctuary city laws. Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, has been making efforts to bypass the legislation so NYPD can work in tandem with ICE to pursue criminal illegal migrants.

ICE said that Zapeta-Calil unlawfully entered the United States in 2018. He was deported from the country under the Trump administration and returned to the US on an unknown date. Zapeta-Calil had been living in a Brooklyn shelter at the time of the killing and was employed as a roofer.

If convicted of murder, Zapeta-Calil faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Border czar Tom Homan vowed that federal law enforcement authorities would eventually deport Zapeta-Calil.

“He’s not gonna get away,” Homan said during an interview Sean Hannity, according to the New York Post.

From the New York Post:

Zapeta-Calil is currently in the custody of New York City’s Department of Correction – at Rikers Island – but because of the Big Apple’s sanctuary city policies, the agency is refusing to turn him over to federal authorities for deportation, according to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

Homan indicated that federal agents will not be deterred despite the correction department’s refusal to honor the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer.

“If we have to sit outside that jail every day, 24/7, we’ll get our hands on him,” Homan vowed.

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“New York City, or any other sanctuary city, is not gonna stop ICE from keeping President Trump’s promise to eradicate every criminal illegal alien, every public threat illegal alien, every national security threat illegal alien from this country,” he added. “We’ll get it done.”

“They just – sanctuary cities make it harder and make it more dangerous, but they’re not going to stop what we’re doing.”

Under New York City’s current sanctuary status, local law enforcement is prevented from cooperating with federal immigration authorities to hold migrants in custody until they can be picked up for deportation proceedings.

ICE issued the detainer against Zapeta-Calil after his December arrest in the arson attack.

 

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