DHS Moves to Deport Alleged MS‑13 Member Wanted for El Salvador Pastor’s Murder
The Department of Homeland Security says it has begun deportation proceedings against Danny Antonio Granados‑Garcia, an alleged MS‑13 member from El Salvador who was arrested last month in Waterbury, Connecticut and is wanted in his home country for the aggravated‑homicide killing of a pastor. According to DHS and the FBI, Granados‑Garcia was initially released into the United States by the Obama administration in 2016 near the Rio Grande Valley after he falsely claimed to be an unaccompanied minor, and has been categorized in U.S. data as a "non‑criminal" alien because he had no domestic convictions despite the foreign warrant. ICE took him into custody on March 10 in a multi‑agency operation, and DHS officials now say he will remain detained until he is deported to El Salvador. Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis is using the case to argue that the "non‑criminal" label obscures serious public‑safety risks and to defend ICE’s focus on such arrests even as a record‑long partial DHS shutdown has starved the department of funding. The story fits a broader administration push—echoed in partisan online debate—to link foreign gang violence and long‑standing border processing failures to arguments for tougher immigration enforcement and against Democratic calls to curb ICE.
📌 Key Facts
- Danny Antonio Granados‑Garcia, a Salvadoran national and alleged MS‑13 member, is wanted in El Salvador on an aggravated‑homicide warrant for the alleged murder of a pastor.
- DHS says he was released near the Rio Grande Valley, Texas, in 2016 after falsely claiming unaccompanied‑minor status under the Obama administration.
- ICE arrested him on March 10, 2026, in a multi‑agency operation in Waterbury, Connecticut, and DHS says he is now in ICE custody pending deportation.
- Acting DHS Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis publicly criticized the use of "non‑criminal" alien labels and claimed 70% of ICE arrests involve illegal immigrants convicted or charged with U.S. crimes.
- The enforcement action comes amid a roughly 50‑day partial DHS shutdown and leadership changes that put Markwayne Mullin in charge of the department.
📊 Relevant Data
MS-13 originated in Los Angeles in the 1980s among Salvadoran immigrants fleeing the civil war in El Salvador, with many members later deported back to Central America, contributing to the gang's transnational spread.
MS-13 — Americas Quarterly
US foreign policy during the 1980s supported the Salvadoran government in its civil war against leftist guerrillas, providing military aid that contributed to violence and displacement, leading to increased migration to the United States.
America's Role in El Salvador's Deterioration — Case Western Reserve University School of Law
As of 2018, MS-13 had an estimated US membership of up to 10,000, with the gang active in multiple states and involved in crimes such as drug distribution and extortion.
MS-13 — Wikipedia
Root causes of migration from El Salvador to the US include high levels of violence, poverty, and economic instability, with some studies finding that victims of multiple crimes have significantly higher migration intentions.
Central American Migration: Root Causes and U.S. Policy — Congressional Research Service
MS-13 often targets victims within Latino communities, with examples including murders of individuals with Hispanic names in recent convictions, indicating intra-ethnic victimization patterns.
Five MS-13 Members Found Guilty of Committing String of Six Grisly Murders to Advance Their Standing in the Criminal Street Gang — U.S. Department of Justice
In fiscal year 2025, ICE data shows that while 70% of arrests involve individuals with US criminal convictions or charges, a portion of 'non-criminal' arrests include those wanted for serious crimes abroad, such as homicide.
DHS Unveils 2025 Worst of the Worst Criminal Illegal Aliens Arrested by DHS Law Enforcement — Department of Homeland Security
📰 Source Timeline (1)
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