Chicago group says immigrant wrongly detained over letter scheme linked to Trump threats

Immigrant wrongly detained over letter scheme linked to Trump threats, Chicago group says

An alleged plot to silence a witness has led to a deportation fight in Chicago’s immigration court.

CHICAGO - An immigration court judge in Chicago needed more time to review all the documents and set a June 10 date for a man accused of threatening to kill President Donald Trump.

The man was allegedly framed but will remain in ICE custody until then.

What we know:

Prosecutors charged Demetric D. Scott with felony witness intimidation, identity theft and two counts of bail jumping. He is accused of trying to frame Ramon Morales Reyes and get him deported by writing threatening letters to President Trump.

Scott allegedly robbed Morales Reyes of his bike and slashed the man with a box cutter in 2023. Scott was arrested and allegedly came up with a plan to keep Morales Reyes from testifying against him.

From jail, Scott allegedly wrote threatening letters to the president and wrote Morales Reyes’ name on the return address. Morales Reyes was detained since it looked like he wrote the letters. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem made a public case out of it.

But investigators discovered Morales Reyes is not fluent in English and his handwriting did not match the letters.

What they're saying:

The group, Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, is calling for justice.

"I think it shows the hypocrisy of this administration. They’re not looking for criminals, they’re looking for people they see as criminals. They have evidence that he is totally innocent and they still tried to deport him," said Omar Flores.

Morales Reyes is married and has three children who are citizens, but he is living in the US illegally and has a prior record. He will remain in ICE custody at Dodge County Jail in Wisconsin.