Illegal immigrant Leonel Moreno, known for becoming a “migrant influencer” by encouraging illegal immigrants to squat in U.S. homes, has been ordered to be deported by an immigration judge. However, according to a report from the New York Post, the chances of his deportation are slim.
Moreno, a 27-year-old Venezuelan, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in March. Shortly after his arrest, his wife publicly complained about not being able to visit him in jail. An immigration judge in Ohio reportedly ordered that Moreno be deported by September 9, according to Post sources.
Moreno first crossed into the U.S. illegally on April 23, 2022, via Eagle Pass, Texas, but failed to report for a hearing with ICE, joining millions of other illegal immigrants who have similarly avoided scheduled hearings. His rise to notoriety came as he flaunted the benefits he claimed the Biden-Harris administration offered to illegal immigrants.
Despite the deportation order, it is uncertain whether Moreno will actually return to Venezuela. President Nicolás Maduro’s administration has stopped accepting deportation flights from the U.S. or Mexico, reportedly in retaliation for U.S. economic sanctions imposed on Venezuela following Maduro’s controversial re-election. Additionally, there are no direct commercial flights between the U.S. and Venezuela due to the ongoing civil unrest in the country.
The Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua, has fueled much of the civil unrest, with some illegal immigrants linked to the gang taking over apartment buildings in cities like Aurora, Colorado, and extorting money from residents.
Moreno has shown no remorse for entering the U.S. illegally or for benefiting from government assistance programs unavailable to American citizens. In one Instagram post, he boasted, “I didn’t cross the Rio Grande to work like a slave,” while flashing $100 bills. He also mentioned that his child’s hospital bills were covered, attributing it to “Papa Biden.”
In an interview with the Post last April, Moreno claimed he was a victim of persecution, saying, “I came here to the United States because of persecution in my country… But they’re doing the same thing to me in the United States — persecuting me.”
He also rejected media portrayals of him, insisting, “It’s all misinformation in the media about me. They’re defaming me. They’re misrepresenting me in the news… I am a good father, a good husband, a good son, a good person, humble, respectful to people who respect me.”
