Press Release
ICE SUPERVISORY DETENTION AND DEPORTATION OFFICER CHARGED AND ARRESTED FOR HARBORING AN ALIEN
January 30, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Steven J. Mocsary, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Homeland Security , U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), announced today that defendant Sherrod Russell, a Supervisory Detention and Deportation Officer with ICE, was arrested and charged today with one count of harboring an alien, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1324(a)(1)(A)(iii), and two counts of making false statements, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001(a)(2). The defendant made his initial appearance in court this afternoon and will be released on bond.
According to the Indictment, from approximately January 2004 to January 2009, Russell allegedly harbored and shielded from detection an individual alien who was staying in a residential property owned by the defendant. The Indictment further alleges that Russell in fact knew that the alien had entered and remained in the United States illegally. In addition, Russell is charged with lying to investigators in an effort to conceal this fact.
U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta stated, “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to the investigation and prosecution of all corruption matters, including allegations of corrupt activities by law enforcement officers whose duty it is to uphold the law.”
Steven J. Mocsary, Special Agent in Charge of the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility, stated, “Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Professional Responsibility is dedicated to aggressively investigating all allegations of corruption involving employees and civilians within our area of responsibility. ICE - OPR takes great pride in protecting the integrity of all ICE employees. We will continue to investigate any allegations of employee misconduct that are referred.”
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Professional Responsibility. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William White.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
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