Utah student in federal custody after Mesa County Sheriff’s Office shares information with ICE
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GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — A 19-year-old college student from Utah is in custody at a federal immigration detention center in Aurora following a traffic stop by local law enforcement in western Colorado.
Caroline Dias Goncalves, a University of Utah student, was arrested Thursday, June 5 while driving to Denver, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. Mesa County Sheriff’s Office investigator Alexander Zwinck, who is assigned to a drug interdiction team, first pulled Dias Goncalves over on I-70 near Loma, Colorado.
According to body camera video released by the sheriff’s office and reviewed by Rocky Mountain PBS, the investigator stopped Dias Goncalves for following too close to a semi truck, but let her go with a warning.
But a few miles later, in Grand Junction, Dias Goncalves was stopped again, this time by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers who arrested her, according to the Tribune.
Investigator Zwinck was in a group chat with federal law enforcement, and shared information about his traffic stop with Dias Goncalves to the group. The sheriff’s office said that chat was supposed to be used for multi-agency drug enforcement operations along Colorado highways.
“We would like to reiterate that we were unaware that the communication group was used for anything other than drug interdiction efforts and that we have since removed all Mesa County Sheriff’s Office members from the communication group,” read a press release issued June 16.
A Colorado law passed in 2019, HB19-1124, generally prohibits local law enforcement from sharing information with federal immigration authorities such as ICE or Homeland Security Investigations.
Colorado Newsline reports that HSI works closely with ICE to identify targets for enforcement operations.
Molly Casey, public information officer for the Mesa County Sheriff’s office, told Rocky Mountain PBS the group chat is run by HSI.
“Through our Administrative Investigation, we have learned that the federal representatives within the communication group began using the material collected for drug interdiction efforts to extrapolate immigration information for the purposes of ICE enforcement,” the sheriff’s office said.
“This use of information is contradictory to Colorado law and was initially intended for the purpose of reducing illegal drug trafficking in Colorado. Unfortunately, it resulted in the later contact between ICE and Miss Dias Goncalves.”
When asked if the sheriff’s office violated state law, or was under investigation regarding the group chat, the Colorado Attorney General’s office declined to comment.
The Trump administration has said its “top priority” is arresting undocumented people with criminal records. Dias Goncalves’ arrest is at least the second case this month in which immigration officers pulled over and arrested a college student with no criminal record.
Dias Goncalves and her parents came to the United States 12 years ago from Brazil, fleeing violence, according to the Tribune. They had a six-month tourist visa, but stayed after it expired.
Dias Goncalves is a “Dreamer,” a term used to refer to undocumented young people who came to the United States as children. Polling shows strong bipartisan support among Americans for granting permanent legal status to Dreamers. A friend of Dias Goncalves organized a GoFundMe the day after her arrest. It already exceeded its $20,000 goal by more than $6,000.
Three years ago Dias Goncalves’ family applied for asylum. The application has been pending in court ever since.
According to the Tribune, Dias Goncalves will have an initial court appearance on June 18.
Type of story: News
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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