NEWARK, N.J. — A Salvadoran national and MS-13 gang member wanted in his home country for aggravated homicide and ties to terrorist organizations was arrested in New Jersey on Dec. 20, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Johnathan Stanley Garcia-Vasquez, also known as Johnathan Stanley Garcia-Garcia, was apprehended outside his residence in West New York, New Jersey, by ERO Newark officers with assistance from FBI Newark. He is currently in ERO custody pending his removal to El Salvador, where authorities issued a warrant for his arrest in 2018.
Garcia entered the United States unlawfully in June 2016 near Hidalgo, Texas, and was detained by U.S. Border Patrol. After an immigration judge granted him bond in January 2017, Garcia was released but failed to appear for his removal proceedings. An immigration judge ordered him removed in absentia on Oct. 30, 2018, and ERO Newark declared his bond breached in December 2018.
“The United States is not a safe haven for international fugitives seeking to exploit our immigration laws to evade justice in their home countries,” said ERO Newark Field Office Director John Tsoukaris.
Garcia’s arrest underscores continued efforts to apprehend and remove foreign fugitives who pose a public safety threat in the United States.
