Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that the federal government was not notified about previous arrests by the suspect in the murder of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student.
Partial transcript as follows:
MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you about a- a criminal case that has become a political rallying point. You heard Donald Trump use this phrase, “migrant crime”. A 22 year old nursing student—I know you’ve been following this—Laken Riley, in the state of Georgia, was murdered allegedly by an undocumented Venezuelan migrant. The suspect had been detained by Border Patrol upon crossing, released with temporary permission to stay in the country. He then went on allegedly to commit crimes twice, once in New York for driving a scooter without a license, and once in connection with a shoplifting case in Georgia. Did those states and their law enforcement communicate to the federal government that this had happened? Should this man have been deported?
MAYORKAS: A few thoughts. First, Margaret, first and foremost, an absolute tragedy. And our hearts break for and our prayers are with the family, number one. Number two, and importantly, as a prosecutor, having prosecuted violent crime and other crimes for 12 years, one individual is responsible for the murder, and that is the murderer. And we work very closely with state and local law enforcement to ensure that individuals who pose a threat to public safety are indeed our highest priority for detention and removal.
BRENNAN: But are you saying there that the federal government had been informed about this individual and the alleged crimes he had committed in those states? Because he could have been deported if that was the case. Was there a breakdown in the system?
MAYORKAS: So, Margaret, there are a number of cities around the country that have varying degrees of cooperation with the immigration authorities. We firmly believe that if–
BRENNAN: And New York did not?
MAYORKAS: –we firmly believe that if a city is aware of an individual who poses a threat to public safety, then we would request that they provide us with that information so that we can ensure that that individual is detained if the facts so warrant.
BRENNAN: And it sounds like they were not coordinating.
MAYORKAS: Well, different cities have different levels of cooperation. We were not notified in this instance.
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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