San Salvador Police Chief Urges U.S. Not to Deport Gang Worker

The police chief of San Salvador on Wednesday joined local politicians and activists in fighting the deportation of Alex Sanchez, a reformed gang member and car thief who was turned over to federal immigration officials by the Los Angeles Police Department.

Sanchez’s supporters say that he was harassed by officers from the LAPD’s Rampart Division for his work in an anti-gang program called Homies Unidos and that arresting officers violated a city policy prohibiting police from inquiring about a person’s immigration status.

Sanchez, a citizen of El Salvador who is living in the United States illegally, is seeking a special visa for government informants.

San Salvador Police Chief Eduardo Linares traveled to Los Angeles to testify on Sanchez’s behalf during deportation hearings, which began Wednesday. “If Alex Sanchez returns to El Salvador, the probability he will be killed is high,” because Los Angeles gang members continue their deadly rivalries in El Salvador, Linares told a news conference.

State Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles) argued that Sanchez should be allowed to live in Los Angeles because he is a hero. “He has rehabilitated himself,” Hayden said. “He has been saving lives.”

The LAPD has argued that Sanchez was arrested because he is a prior deportee with a felony conviction.

Hayden said Sanchez was targeted because he testified on behalf of a teenager accused of a fatal shooting. Sanchez testified the teenager was at a Homies Unidos meeting when the shooting occurred. Charges against the juvenile were later dropped.

“He testified against the police, and after a lot of harassment, they picked him up on a year-old warrant,” Hayden said.

Sanchez has said that his arrest by Rampart Division Officer Jesus Amezcua came after months of threats. Federal authorities in February declined to prosecute Sanchez for reentering the country after being deported in 1994.