NYC migrant squatters detained by ICE, had prior arrests

NYC migrant squatters arrested had previous criminal history

One of the Venezuelan illegal immigrants found in the Bronx home was arrested last year for an alleged murder in a New York suburb.

NEW YORK - Three of the eight migrants found squatting with guns and drugs inside a Bronx apartment last week have been taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Detainer requests have been issued for four others and one remains on the loose, something that has neighbors on high alert.

All of them have previously been apprehended at the southern border and arrested for crimes--with one suspected of murder last year in Yonkers, Fox News reports.

FOX 5 NY's Rosanna Scotto sat down with NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell, who said the rent hadn't been paid in months.

"These people shouldn't have been out in the streets," Chell said.

Who are the suspects?

The eight suspects face gun, drug and child endangerment charges. They've been identified as:

Hector Desousa-Villalta, 24.
Jaiver Alborno, 22.
Yoessy Pino Castillo, 20.
Yerbin Lozado-Munoz, 25.
Yojairo Martinez, 42.
Miquel Vaamondes-Barrios, 31.
Jefferson Orlando Abreau, 39.
Johan Cardenas Silva, 35.

Four guns, magazines, ammunition and drugs were found in a suspected migrant squatters' home. (NYPD)

Hector Desousa-Villalta

Desousa-Villalta, 24, the one allegedly waving a gun last week during the arrest, was released without bail.

He had previously been accused of shooting another migrant in the leg during an argument in Yonkers last Aug. but the attempted murder case fell apart when the victim refused to cooperate, Chief Chell told the New York Post.

"On Aug. 28, 2023, the Yonkers Police Department arrested De Sousa for the crimes of assault-1st: intent to cause serious injury with a weapon; and murder second degree: with intent," an ICE statement said.

Yoessy Pino Castillo and Yojairo Martinez

Castillo, 20, and Martinez, 42, were also arrested during the raid.

Both have been taken into custody at the southern border and released within the last two years.

Castillo was detained by authorities at the border in Texas in May 2023, and Martinez was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents in Sept. 2022 near El Paso, Texas.

Castillo was also arrested for shoplifting in New Jersey at the beginning of the year by Woodbridge police.

They and six others face multiple charges, including weapons possession, having a loaded firearm and possession of a controlled substance.

Migrant squatters arrested in the Bronx

Eight migrants found squatting last week inside a Norwood, Bronx apartment were arrested on gun and drug charges, but six of them were subsequently released without bail. FOX 5 NY's Briella Tomassetti has the details.

Johan Jose Cardenas Silva, Yerbin Benjamin Lozada Munoz and Javier Jose Albornoz Marchan

Silva, Munoz, and Marchan have each been issued ICE detainers.

Silva, 35, was deported by a judge last March but was later released without being reported.

Munoz was taken into custody by border officials in Texas last October before also being released.

Marchan was arrested several times for suspected shoplifting, weapons possession, having a loaded firearm on school grounds and possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell.

Miguel Gregerio Barrios

Police are still looking for Barrios.

A neighbor told FOX 5 NY he thinks the group had been living next door for six months, or possibly even longer.

"Obviously, you don't want hooligans hanging out with you or living near you," Alfred Munoz said.

Munoz said the alleged squatters moved in without the owners' knowledge and said the owner probably couldn't get them evicted because they were living there for more than 30 days.

Fox News Digital contributed to this report.