A popular online liberal account attempted to spread panic about immigration officials trying to deport a Native American, but the Trump administration fired back against the story.
The Occupy Democrats account posted a story about the arrest of Leticia Jacobo, a 24-year-old woman and member of Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community in Arizona.
‘Dead wrong. This woman was never in ICE custody.’
Jacobo, who was born in Phoenix and is an American citizen, was arrested for allegedly driving without a license in September and was being detained at a Polk County Jail in Des Moines, Iowa.
The woman was scheduled to be released on Nov. 11, but her family was informed that she was being held on a detainer from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The detainers are often issued when federal officials request time to determine whether federal immigration law has been violated.
“My sister said, ‘How is she going to get deported if she’s a Native American?’ and ‘We have proof,'” said Maria Nunez, Jacobo’s aunt. “They said, ‘Well, we don’t know because we’re not immigration and we can’t answer those questions. We’re just holding her for them. So when they pick her up tonight, they’re going to go ahead and deport her to wherever they’re going to take her, but we have no information on that.'”
The family scrambled to have Jacobo’s birth certificate delivered to officials before she was to be remanded to federal custody. She was released a day later, on Nov. 12.
A spokesperson for the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said the incident was the result of a clerical error. Lt. Mark Chance said the detainer was intended for a different inmate.
“It was human error, but I’m sure as soon as the command staff find out about it, they’re going to have some meetings with their supervisors internally and be like, ‘Hey, guys, we gotta keep our thumb on this, this is silly,'” Chance said.
The Occupy Democrats account called for the abolition of ICE over the incident.
“ICE just tried to deport this woman,” the post began.
“This is what happens when an agency like ICE is given unchecked power — where ‘clerical errors’ can destroy lives, and where systemic racism and dehumanization are written into the paperwork,” they wrote. “If her family hadn’t fought like hell, Leticia Jacobo could have been vanished into ICE custody — another name lost in a broken, brutal system.”
Their post went viral on X, with over 4.6 million views.
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the Dept. of Homeland Security, fired back on social media.
“Dead wrong. This woman was never in ICE custody,” she responded.
A Blaze News request for comment from Occupy Democrats was not immediately answered.
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Jacobo’s family says they are considering legal action over the incident. They also claimed that Jacobo had her tribal identification with her at the time of her arrest and accused officials of discrimination.
“I do want to say that it’s racial profiling because she’s been there before, they have a rap sheet on her — why would they make a mistake with someone that’s constantly coming in?” Nunez asked.
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Native american deportation, Leticia jacobo, Occupy democrats, White house vs dems, Politics
