ICE is asking Harris County to arrest a man accused of murder with a hammer
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US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has asked Democratic-run Harris County officials not to release a hammer-wielding immigrant from custody after allegedly beating and killing a co-worker at a construction site in the Texas suburb of Houston.
This comes as Texas officials clash with the City of Houston over a new policy that limits law enforcement’s cooperation with ICE. The conflict reflects a broader national debate between Democrats and Republicans over the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies. Disagreements over immigration enforcement have led to continued cuts in funding for the Department of Homeland Security during the partial government shutdown.
Now, Venezuelan national Josue Abraham Chirino-Leonice has been charged with murdering carpenter Juan Antonio Salinas Leija at a home north of Houston earlier this month, according to local news outlet KHOU-11. The store says that Salinas Leija was found dead in a house under renovation with serious injuries consistent with being attacked with a hammer. Chirino-Leonice was later arrested while driving the victim’s truck in east Houston.
ICE filed a detainer — a detainer request — at the Harris County Jail last week. According to DHS, Chirino-Leonice was released from the country under the Biden administration in 2023.
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US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has taken into custody Josue Abraham Chirino-Leonice (left), a 19-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela, who is accused of killing his partner by beating him to death with a hammer in north Houston. (ICE; DHS)
DHS said the US Border Patrol first arrested Chirino-Leonice in November 2023. The agency said the Biden administration “then released him halfway across the country.”
Gabriel Martinez, acting director of ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations Houston office, called the alleged murder a brutal attack on an illegal alien “who was never allowed to enter the country.”
“This illegal bandit – who should not have been allowed to enter the country in the first place – is accused of brutally beating and killing his colleague with a hammer and then dying in the house they were repairing together,” said Martinez.
He said ICE officials in Houston “are working tirelessly to restore integrity to our nation’s immigration system to end the unnecessary killing and suffering in this country caused by criminal illegal immigrants,” adding, “We will not rest until we have accomplished that task.”
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ICE Houston Deportation (Fox Stories)
ICE has arrested thousands of illegal immigrants in the Houston area since President Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office in January 2025. Those arrested included at least 414 illegal immigrants charged or convicted of child sex crimes, according to DHS.
Earlier this month, ICE Houston said in five days it arrested nearly 150 criminals, including five felons, two drug dealers, 14 thieves, 62 violent criminals, one arsonist, seven DWIs, and nine immigrants with 31 DWI convictions.
The Democratic Houston City Council recently voted to end a policy that requires law enforcement to detain illegal immigrants through ICE for at least 30 minutes. Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott called the policy a “breach of contract” with the state. Last week, he issued an announcement that the city should postpone the move or pay R110 million in funding to the state.
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Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott (right) has issued an order to the City of Houston to reverse its new policy that limits cooperation with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials or pay a large fine. (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Jay Janner/The Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)
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Democratic Mayor John Whitmire called the situation a “tragedy” for public safety. The city council is expected to reconsider the policy on Wednesday.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the County Sheriff’s Office for comment.
