FACT CHECK: DHS Arrests Criminal Illegal Aliens, Not “Firefighters” as Media Falsely Claims

Individuals arrested had prior charges for drug trafficking and illegally carrying a firearm

WASHINGTON - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) calls out the media for false reporting and completely misrepresenting an encounter between U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and two criminal illegal aliens. The media's "firefighters" were actually criminal illegal aliens.

Jose Bertin Cruz-Estrada, a criminal illegal alien from Mexico, past charges include the delivery and selling of methamphetamine. Border Patrol previously encountered this criminal illegal alien 15 times. Cruz-Estrada has a final order of removal from April 2015 and was last removed from the United States on February 27, 2016. He chose to disregard our laws and illegally re-enter the country again.

The other criminal illegal alien arrested has prior charges for illegally carrying a concealed weapon.

"The two illegal aliens apprehended were not "firefighters" as the media claimed, nor were they responding to any active emergency-in fact they were CRIMINAL illegal aliens." said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. "Both had prior arrests. One for drug trafficking and one for illegally carrying a firearm. Once again, the media ran with a false narrative and left out the key details. When will the media stop peddling these false new stories to demonize our law enforcement?"

The two illegal aliens apprehended were NOT firefighters. The two contracted work crews questioned on the day of their arrests were not assigned to actively fight the fire; they were there in a support role, cutting logs into firewood. The firefighting response remained uninterrupted the entire time.

No active firefighters were questioned, and U.S. Border Patrol's actions did not prevent or interfere with any personnel actively engaged in firefighting efforts.

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