U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced the removal of Ruben Alonso Urbina Martinez, a 39-year-old Honduran citizen, who was deported from the United States on April 2. Urbina, classified as an illegal alien, is a fugitive wanted in Honduras on a murder charge.
ICE coordinated a flight through its Air Operations Unit to transport Urbina from the Alexandria Staging Facility in Louisiana to Ramon Villeda Morales International Airport in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. He was subsequently transferred to the custody of Honduran authorities.
Urbina's illegal entry into the U.S. happened on an undisclosed date and location. ICE received confirmation on February 20 about Urbina's murder charge in Honduras. He was apprehended in Dublin, Texas, in a targeted enforcement action executed with the Erath County Sheriff's Office on the same day. The removal process was expedited, leading to Urbina's repatriation to Honduras on April 2.
"This foreign fugitive fled to the United States to evade prosecution for murder in his home country of Honduras," explained ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Houston Field Office Director Bret A. Bradford. "Working in tandem with our partners at the Erath County Sheriff’s Office, we were able to quickly locate him and safely take him into custody. By repatriating him to Honduras to face justice for his alleged crimes, we have eliminated a threat to public safety in our local communities and sent a resounding message that Southeast Texas will not be a refuge for foreign fugitives or anyone else who undermines the integrity of our nation’s immigration laws."
The removal was supported by ERO Honduras and the Security Alliance for Fugitive Enforcement Task Force (SAFE Program), which began in 2012. The program focuses on using local, in-country resources and leads to locate and remove individuals in the U.S. illegally who have foreign arrest warrants. It is operated under the guidance of the host nation’s Assistant Attaché for Removal, forming a task force with relevant foreign law enforcement and immigration authorities.
Members of the public with information about foreign fugitives are encouraged to contact ICE at 1 (866) 347-2423 or internationally at 001-1802-872-6199, or to provide tips through ICE’s online form.
For further updates and information about ICE ERO Houston Field Office's enforcement efforts in Southeast Texas, follow their account on X, formerly known as Twitter: @EROHouston.
