Photo: JASON ALPERT-WISNIA / AFP / Getty Images
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani expressed outrage after Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained a City Council employee during a routine immigration appointment on Long Island on Monday. The employee, identified as Rafael Andres Rubio Bohorquez, is of Venezuelan descent and was reportedly authorized to remain in the U.S. until October 2026. However, the Department of Homeland Security claims he entered the country on a tourist visa in 2017 and did not have legal work authorization.
Mayor Mamdani called the detention "an assault on our democracy, on our city, and our values" and demanded the employee's immediate release. City Council Speaker Julie Menin stated that the employee, who worked as a data analyst, had been compliant with all legal requirements and had no criminal record. Menin criticized the incident as an "egregious government overreach" and emphasized that the employee was doing "everything right" by attending his court appointment.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin defended the arrest, labeling Rubio Bohorquez a "criminal illegal alien" and asserting that the U.S. will not tolerate those who enter the country illegally. The employee has been transferred to a detention center in Manhattan, with potential for further relocation.
The incident has prompted backlash from city and federal lawmakers. New York Attorney General Letitia James and Congressman Dan Goldman have both called for the employee's release. The case has also reignited discussions on limiting local cooperation with federal immigration authorities, with new legislative efforts underway in New York and New Jersey.
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