Ernesto Alejandro Perez-Garcia, a Mexican national, was arrested by ICE in Redondo Beach, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. Perez-Garcia has a history of arrests dating to 2003 for alcohol-, controlled substance- and driving-related offenses, as well as making terroristic threats and illegally re-entering the U.S. ICE said he illegally entered the country five times and made four additional attempts to enter.

Fox News Digital witnessed ICE arrest Perez-Garcia on Thursday. When agents first encountered him on the Redondo Beach esplanade, he denied his identity. However, when confronted with a previous mugshot, Perez-Garcia acknowledged that he was the man they were seeking.

After ICE booked and processed him, Perez-Garcia told Fox News Digital that he lied to agents “to see if I could get away with it.” He said that after he was confronted with his mugshot, he realized, “I’m busted, you know, in other words, I’m f—ed.”

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Perez-Garcia said that despite national headlines about ICE operations, he did not expect to be arrested Thursday morning. He said he was on his usual morning walk when agents encountered him.

“Once I saw the officer … with the picture of me, there was no way I was going to run,” he said.

“At the end of the day,” he continued, “it’s the alcohol that got me back in this mess.” While he said a friend’s recent death “got me caught up [in alcoholism],” he said, “It shouldn’t have, so it’s my mistake, and I’ve got to be responsible for that.”

Perez-Garcia first entered the U.S. at an unknown date and location. The Torrance Police Department in California initially arrested him on April 3, 2003, for driving without a license. He was convicted and sentenced to 30 days. Over the next few years, he was also convicted of driving with a suspended license and possessing controlled substance paraphernalia.

According to ICE, the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, convicted Perez-Garcia on April 10, 2006, of threatening crime with intent to terrorize. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail and three years of probation. ICE removed him to Mexico for the first time the next month.

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However, he re-entered the U.S. at an unknown date and location. On June 27, 2006, he was arrested again for threatening crime with intent to terrorize.

Over the next two decades, Perez-Garcia was arrested for various offenses, including repeated attempts to cross the southern border in Tecate, California.

Since 2020, Perez-Garcia has been arrested five times for disorderly conduct, including four arrests by the Redondo Beach Police Department. He was arrested twice this year for disorderly conduct, on April 17 and May 8. ICE said the department declined to honor its detainer requests twice, in 2020 and again in 2026.

Perez-Garcia claimed that the Redondo Beach Police Department “let me know a couple years ago” that ICE was looking for him.

“Redondo PD had told me about it, you know, Redondo PD was cool with it. They let me go with it, you know what I mean, but they also told me I had a warrant for my arrest,” he said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Redondo Beach Police Department for comment on Perez-Garcia’s assertion.

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Los Angeles Field Office Director Tom Giles spoke with Fox News Digital shortly before ICE arrested Perez-Garcia. Giles emphasized that “when these detainers aren’t honored, what it does for us is it sends our officers out into the community, putting our officers at risk and other community members at risk to go out and try to apprehend this individual.”

“So, for sanctuary policies, what we ask these jurisdictions is to cooperate with us,” he said, adding, “It will make our communities safer.”

Perez-Garcia said he believes his arrest by ICE is “fair.”

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“I was trying to lie about it because I actually don’t got nothing there in Mexico right now, you know what I mean? I grew up right here, and this is what I know,” he said. Perez-Garcia also said his children live in the U.S. and that he has heard stories about how “so hard” it is to return to the U.S.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen, to tell you the truth,” he said. “I already knew it was going to catch up to me; I just didn’t know when.”

The interim final rule, which takes effect immediately, gives USCIS the authority to send some asylum applications to immigration court without conducting an affirmative asylum interview, eliminating what the administration called an unnecessary step in the adjudication process.

The change applies to affirmative asylum claims, which are filed by immigrants who are not in removal proceedings. Defensive asylum claims, in contrast, are raised before an immigration judge after the government has initiated removal proceedings.

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Currently, USCIS generally interviews affirmative asylum applicants before either granting asylum or referring the case to an immigration judge for a separate review. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Fox News Digital the process can result in some applications being reviewed twice — first by USCIS and then again by an immigration judge — adding to the agency’s growing backlog.

Under the new rule, USCIS can refer certain asylum applications directly to immigration court without first conducting an interview, a change administration officials said will allow both asylum officers and immigration judges to process cases more efficiently while directing resources toward applicants with legitimate claims of persecution.

The rule is the latest step in the Trump administration’s broader effort to tighten the asylum system and speed up immigration enforcement, with officials arguing the current process has been exploited by immigrants seeking to delay removal proceedings and obtain work authorization.

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“For far too long, the asylum system has been exploited for purposes of delay and work authorization, not legitimate claims of protection,” USCIS Director Joseph Edlow told Fox News Digital. “America’s asylum system exists to protect individuals who genuinely fear persecution and this rule will help ensure that resources are directed to the timely adjudication of those claims instead of to those seeking to use the system as a loophole.”

DHS General Counsel James Percival said delays within the asylum system have hindered immigration enforcement.

“One of the greatest barriers to effective immigration enforcement is intentional delay by illegal aliens and the open borders attorneys who represent them,” Percival told Fox News Digital. “My office works every day with the immigration components of DHS to improve efficiency and fulfill the president’s mandate. The rule would do just that.”

The rule takes effect immediately, though USCIS said it will continue accepting public comments before issuing a final version, responding to the feedback it receives.

Elaine Angene Escoe, 41, arrived back in South Florida Thursday after Jamaican authorities arrested her following a federal manhunt. Prosecutors allege she helped fraudulently obtain more than $32 million in taxpayer-funded COVID-19 relief funds before fleeing the country after failing to appear in federal court.

Escoe was indicted in 2025 on charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and multiple counts of money laundering, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.

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Federal prosecutors said a judge issued an arrest warrant after Escoe failed to appear in court in May 2025. Authorities allege she fled to Jamaica, where she was later located and arrested after the FBI received a tip.

“Elaine Angene Escoe’s arrest and return to the United States demonstrates that no one is beyond the reach of American justice,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said.

Blanche said Escoe is accused of participating in a multimillion-dollar scheme to defraud taxpayer-funded COVID-19 relief programs and said the Justice Department will continue prosecuting those who steal from the American people.

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Patel called Escoe’s arrest another milestone in the FBI’s international fraud crackdown, saying she is the fourth alleged “Most Wanted Fraudster” captured in the past five weeks.

“The historic success of the ‘Most Wanted Fraudster’ list continues as the FBI and our partners just captured our fourth Most Wanted Fraudster in 5 weeks, and yet another high value target returned to the U.S. by this FBI,” Patel said. “Elaine Angene Escoe, on the run since May 2025, was captured in Jamaica while living under a fake identity of ‘Harley Newman’ — and returned to the United States today to face justice.”

Patel said Escoe is charged with being involved in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering connected to a scheme that fraudulently obtained more than $32 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds.

He added that the FBI has returned more than 30 high-value targets to the U.S. since June. Patel said four alleged fraud suspects captured over the past five weeks are collectively charged with nearly $1.8 billion in fraud after spending more than 3,500 days on the run across three continents.

“Under this administration, fraud is no longer tolerated — and those who steal from American taxpayers have nowhere to hide,” Patel said.

Authorities said the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service, Jamaican law enforcement and the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office coordinated Escoe’s return to the U.S.

Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, traveled with his daughter, Cissie Graham Lynch, to encourage relief teams and comfort people who lost loved ones, homes and nearly everything they owned.

Lynch, senior advisor and spokesperson for Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, said one encounter with a local pastor stayed with her throughout the visit.

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“Today, I saw both the immense suffering and the incredible strength of the Venezuelan people,” Lynch told Fox News Digital. “I was deeply impacted by the story of a pastor who lost several members of his congregation in the earthquakes and is still serving his community. He said it all when he told us, ‘I am here to serve and win souls for Christ.’ I thank God for that faithful pastor and for the opportunity that we have to encourage and support him as he shares the hope of Jesus Christ in Venezuela.”

“These people are surrounded by so much death and destruction. We want to bring the light of Jesus Christ into these places of pain,” Franklin Graham told Fox News Digital.

“I’m thankful for our incredible teams who are doing just that. They are providing medical care, clean water, tents for shelter, and many other emergency supplies,” he continued. “As they do this in Jesus’ Name, they are comforting these families and praying with them during this time of intense grief and loss.”

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At the emergency field hospital in La Guaira, medical teams have treated more than 2,500 patients. The hospital includes two operating rooms, a pharmacy and a laboratory, while doctors continue performing orthopedic surgeries and treating infections and other conditions left untreated in the aftermath of the disaster.

Two powerful earthquakes measuring magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5 struck Venezuela just 37 seconds apart on June 24, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The earthquakes killed more than 5,000 people and injured more than 16,000, according to figures announced by Venezuelan authorities. La Guaira was among the areas hardest hit.

More than 170 Samaritans Purse Disaster Assistance Response Team members are serving in some of the hardest-hit areas, including La Guaira, Playa Grande and Caraballeda, while aid is also being delivered through church partners in Caracas.

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Six Boeing 767 airlifts have carried 295 tons of relief supplies into the country. Samaritan’s Purse said its aircraft were the first non-military flights to arrive in Venezuela following the earthquakes.

More than 10,200 families have received emergency supplies, including tents, tarps, solar lights, blankets, hygiene kits, cooking sets and Spanish Bibles.

The organization has also installed four emergency clinic modules for local healthcare facilities, with a fifth expected to open soon. The clinics are stocked with medical supplies and generators to help restore healthcare in communities devastated by the earthquakes.

Two desalination units have also produced more than 154,000 liters of clean water.

Samaritan’s Purse said nearly every patient treated at its field hospital has lost a family member or close friend.

Among them was a father who injured his leg while rescuing another person’s child from a collapsed 14-story building.

“It was terrifying,” he said. “I thought a plane had crashed.”

Another survivor was buried beneath the rubble after his apartment building collapsed, falling six floors and remaining trapped for two days without food, water or light before rescuers spent six hours pulling him to safety.

“I lose everything, I don’t have anything,” he said. “A nurse here made me paper shoes, I feel so happy for that.”

For the survivor, the compassion and prayer he received proved just as meaningful as the medical care.

“The doctors pray with me,” he said. “That’s beautiful when they get on their knees and pray with me. I love that. Nobody do that for me.”

Yet in the wake of his Minnesota fraud investigation, Shirley has exploded onto the national scene as a one-man journalism machine. 

Recently, he sat down with Fox News Digital at Freedom Fest in Las Vegas to discuss his unconventional rise, his reporting philosophy, and the stories the mainstream media is still ignoring.

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“Well, when I was younger, I’d make vlog pranks, and then I started to get a little bit older and wanted to see what was happening in the world. And it turned into journalism,” Shirley said about his start in reporting. “I didn’t know it was journalism at the time. I thought I was just making YouTube videos on more interesting topics. 

“And now I’m one of the biggest and most well-known journalists in America, in the world, actually.”

Shirley conceded that his particular style is hard to define.

“I think that’s a good mix, like an…independent YouTube journalist, like it’s journalism with a bit of documentary style as well, so it’s kind of different than what anyone has ever done before as far as this new realm of YouTube journalism,” he said.

Shirley said he realized that he had an explosive story as the Minnesota fraud video “Feeding Our Future” scandal cracked nine-digit views on X.

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“When I saw it hit 100 million views, I had never seen a video get to 100 million views on X before. And then it became shared by some of the biggest voices in the world as well,” said Shirley, who boasts 1.7 million followers on the platform, and nearly 2 million subscribers on YouTube.

Among them were Vice President J.D. Vance, Elon Musk and FBI Director Kash Patel.

Shirley said he believes in zeroing in his investigation on primary sources when he is devoting time and resources to new stories.

“I take all the information that’s public from the government and I go straight to the source,” he said.

Despite the massive success Shirley has seen, he still comes across stories that do not get the exposure he feels is warranted.

“On a national level, I think the fentanyl crisis in the United States is really bad,” Shirley said. “I’ve done a few videos on that, but people seem to not want to stop the fentanyl crisis from happening.”

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Unsurprisingly, from time to time, Shirley said his journalistic work takes him to the limits of his comfort zone.

“In the favelas of Brazil, I thought I was going to die. That was a little scary,” he said. “In Kenya and Philadelphia as well, that was pretty dangerous.”

Shirley cited his Spanish language skills as a motivating factor in his coverage of the Biden administration border crisis, which he witnessed firsthand.

“I had heard about what was happening. I was living in Chile at the time. And I started to see what was happening with Venezuelan migrants coming into Chile,” Shirley said. “When I came back to the United States, I started looking into what was going on at the southern border. 

“And since I could speak Spanish, I started to reveal what was actually happening. And people didn’t know that children were being smuggled. 17-year-old girls were coming over all by themselves. 12-year-old girls were all coming over all by themselves. And I kind of started to showcase what was happening from the border all the way to the shelters in New York City.”

Shirley did a two-year mission with the LDS Church, and credits his faith as a motivation for his work.

“Well, I think our faith invites us to look for the truth and expose evil,” he said. “Like, the scriptures, the Bible, everything, it’s a bunch of strong men exposing what’s happening as well, and I think that’s kind of lost.”

Shirley said the recent guilty plea of Fahima Egeh Mahamud — the woman tied to Minnesota’s massive “Feeding Our Future” scandal and daycare fraud scheme — as evidence of the veracity of his work, as the mainstream media and Democratic establishment have worked hard to discredit his investigations.

“Well, numbers don’t lie, and convictions don’t lie either,” he said. “The largest daycare in Minnesota, government funded, just pleaded guilty today.”

Source: YouTube

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EXCLUSIVE: Cartels exploiting rideshare apps for migrant smuggling, Border Patrol warns

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