00:27Hello, everybody.
00:30My name is Kelly Walker.
00:31I am the Acting Field Office Director for ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, Miami
00:36Field Office.
00:36Thanks for being here today.
00:38This is a tragic moment and an awful time and an awful reason to come together as we
00:44talk about a woman who was savagely murdered in our community at the hands of a violent
00:50illegal alien.
00:53So on April 3rd, the Fort Myers Police Department in Fort Myers, Florida, responded to a horrific
00:58crime scene at a gas station where an innocent mother was violently attacked and murdered.
01:04Their surveillance footage, which is circulating widely on social media, shows Robert Joaquin,
01:12a Haitian illegal alien, brutally striking the victim multiple times in the head with a hammer.
01:17This senseless act has shocked our community and underscores the critical importance of
01:22immigration enforcement and our role in public safety.
01:26Through the coordinated efforts of the Fort Myers Police Department, ERO, HSI, U.S. Marshals,
01:33CBP, Air and Marine Operations, this man was swiftly located and apprehended.
01:39The speed and accuracy in which our law enforcement teams were able to track the killer's movements
01:43and arrest him is a testament to our robust law enforcement partnerships here in the state of Florida.
01:50Currently, Mr. Joaquin is being held at the Lee County Jail and charges of homicide and property damage.
01:55ERO has issued an immigration detainer and will ensure that he is never released into the communities
02:01or the streets of the United States again.
02:04Joaquin, an illegal alien from Haiti, first entered the United States on August 9, 2022,
02:10near Key West, Florida, subsequent to a maritime smuggling operation.
02:14He was arrested by the United States Border Patrol.
02:17He was turned over to ICE, ERO, for detention and was later issued an immigration judge's final
02:24order of removal on September 9, 2022.
02:27The prior administration allowed him to be released into the United States
02:30and subsequently granted him temporary protected status,
02:33giving him a legal safeguard to remain in our country.
02:37As of yesterday, the Trump administration stripped that safeguard
02:40and his protections are now revoked.
02:45On June 27, 2025, the Trump administration announced the termination of temporary protective status for Haiti.
02:52It was determined that country conditions have improved to the point where Haitians can be returned safely.
02:58TPS, temporary protective status, was never designed to be a permanent stay in the United States,
03:05but for decades, it's been abused as a de facto amnesty program.
03:10As we have ended TPS, the courts have obstructed the administration from restoring integrity to our immigration system.
03:17On March 11, the Trump administration and the Supreme Court added,
03:23asked the Supreme Court to clear the way for it to end TPS for more than 350,000 Haitian immigrants.
03:28The case that occurred here in Fort Myers highlights the president's objective to restore law and order to our country
03:36and enforce immigration laws enacted by Congress.
03:40We here today stand together to reaffirm our commitment alongside our partners with Homeland Security Investigations,
03:49Fort Myers Police Department, to keep our communities safe and secure.
03:52Here in the state of Florida, we do that.
03:53We do that every day.
03:54We do that proudly.
03:56We do that with the Florida Sheriff's Association, with all the police chiefs.
03:59All the state and local partners work very well together here in the state of Florida,
04:02and we continue to reaffirm that daily.
04:05We've set a standard for 287G partnerships here.
04:08We have 325 agreements with just this fiscal year alone,
04:12over 6,000 arrests associated with those 325 agreements, by far the most in the country.
04:19We lead the way in enforcement, and we've seen tremendous success because of the cooperation in the state of Florida.
04:26As a highlight of that cooperation, I would like to introduce one of our great partners,
04:30Fort Myers Police Department Chief Fields.
04:41Good afternoon.
04:42My name is Jason Fields, and I proudly serve as the police chief for the city of Fort Myers.
04:46Today highlights the results that can transpire with strong partnerships between federal, state, and local agencies.
04:56Robert Joaquin was taken into custody after an extensive, coordinated manhunt.
05:03From the beginning, our commitment was unwavering, and our message was clear.
05:08We were not going home until Joaquin was in custody.
05:12I want to thank our federal partners, along with our state and local agencies,
05:18for their relentless effort, coordination, and shared resources that assisted and ultimately led to his capture.
05:28I would be remiss if I didn't mention the assistants from our community,
05:32who were also instrumental in his apprehension.
05:36As this case moves through the court process,
05:40I'll also recognize our amazing state attorney, Amira Fox, and her team,
05:44as they continue pursuing justice for the victim and her family.
05:51This was a horrific crime.
05:53Evil individuals who commit violent acts in our community
05:58will be pursued, held accountable, and brought to justice.
06:03I will now turn it over to Micah McCombs,
06:07acting special agent in charge with Homeland Security.
06:16Thank you, Chief Fields.
06:19My name is Micah McCombs,
06:21serving as the acting special agent in charge for HSI,
06:23covering Southwest Florida.
06:27HSI is the principal investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security,
06:31and we share a building with enforcement and removal operations.
06:35So when that call came in,
06:37that this subject was on the run,
06:39a seamless search ensued with our partners.
06:43The Fort Myers Police Department is one of our best partners.
06:46In fact, one of the first agents from HSI to take part in the search
06:49is a former FMPD officer.
06:52Our partnerships in Southwest Florida are extremely strong.
06:56This tragic event to this United States citizen
06:59who came here the right way six years ago,
07:01this Bangladeshi national who got her citizenship the right way,
07:07it's senseless.
07:09It's a video you can never unwatch.
07:12It should not happen in this country.
07:15The men and women of HSI and ERO together in this building
07:19with our partners at FMPD responded,
07:23and we're very proud of them,
07:25but we're very sad at the same time this had to happen.
07:29With that, I'll turn it back over to Vaughn, Kelly Walker.
07:37That concludes our briefing.
07:39I'll open the floor up to questions.
07:40Kelly, if I could just ask,
07:42can you clarify how he got into the country?
07:45He was smuggled in and he wasn't granted PTS.
07:50Just to follow up with that,
07:51PTS has extreme vending.
07:53Was he going through the vending process?
07:55So he arrived in the United States via a water vessel
08:01on August 6, 2022 in a maritime smuggling event.
08:05He was not granted temporary protective status until 2023
08:12when he applied later in 2023 and then reapplied in 2024.
08:18So there was a vending process that happens
08:21during that application window,
08:23but he did not actually have it until then.
08:26We released him in 2022
08:27because of the prior administration's policies.
08:31Question.
08:32Yes.
08:34On Monday, a for-by-art police department officer
08:36said in court that Laxie was considered a suspect
08:39in another case.
08:41Can you name what case that is?
08:42I don't think we're talking about
08:43the ongoing investigation at this time.
08:45When it comes to that immigration decision
08:47or that it's based on this man,
08:49how will that impact this case
08:51and possible justice to the victim's family?
08:53Look, we're here to serve as a,
08:55we're a law enforcement partner.
08:56We are here to serve the criminal justice system.
08:59We will work closely hand-in-hand
09:01with the state's attorneys
09:02to make sure that this individual
09:04meets the full due justice deserved to him,
09:08to include if he's turned over to us
09:10and before his final day in court
09:12and his sentencing,
09:13we'll make sure and coordinate that directly
09:15with the state's system
09:17and take him once he's completed his time
09:19and make sure that he never gets
09:21to the streets of the United States
09:22and gets back to his home country.
09:23So we won't be deported prior to any due process?
09:26If the state wants to keep him
09:28in the United States of America,
09:29we will absolutely work with him to do that.
09:31This question is for Chief Fields.
09:34According to the arrest report,
09:35some of the former police officers
09:37had encountered a suspect on March 24th,
09:40so before the incident.
09:41What was the nature of those interactions
09:43and why was he not either arrested or detained then?
09:47Was he not public called
09:48or any kind of detainer that would have allowed for him?
09:51So this is an act of investigation
09:52and we did have some contacts with him
09:55over a period of time,
09:57but we're looking into those
09:58and looking at all those fine details
10:00on why we're in contact with him.
10:01Was that contact to a prior case
10:03separate from this one?
10:05I don't have that information right now, no.
10:07Chief, can you confirm whether he is a suspect
10:10of any other cases at this point?
10:12I cannot confirm, no.
10:14We had heard that he had been to that location before,
10:17had some sort of, you know,
10:20I guess this computer computation regarding ATM
10:22regarding there, I don't know if this is true or not,
10:25but had he been there the day before?
10:28These investigations are very fluid
10:29and we look to vet every piece of information that we get
10:33and we look to track down these rumors
10:35to make sure through video, through witnesses.
10:38So I can't confirm anything at this time with that.
10:41In the four years of the temporary protected status,
10:44what has the suspect convinced been?
10:46Where has he been?
10:48I don't know what was whereabouts
10:50for the last four years, no.
10:52Okay, last question.
10:55If you can't confirm whether or not he's a suspect
10:58in another case,
10:59why would an officer stay in court one day with you?
11:03I don't know.
11:04I'll have to look into it, though.
11:05We'll confirm that.
11:07Okay.
11:07One last question.
11:08I'm sorry.
11:08Okay, last one.
11:10The DHS press release had mentioned
11:12that the TPS expired in 2024,
11:14and I'm trying to just figure out the gap there
11:16between if that's the right date
11:18and sort of like where it was.
11:21So when TPS expires, although expired,
11:24they still have protection
11:25until there's a decision on their renewal application,
11:28which he filed timely.
11:30So he had protection up until the moment
11:33that the administration revoked his protection,
11:36which happened just this week.
11:38So he no longer has that available to him
11:40and will do full justice at this time.
11:43And then I think that was the last question.
11:45Go ahead.
11:45As a reminder, we'll show you the video
11:47as to why we have the date.
12:29All right, thank you.
12:29That concludes our press conference.
12:43You
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