ICE Let $100 Million Jewelry Heist Suspect Self-Deport Before Trial

In a move that defies logic, U.S. immigration authorities quietly allowed a suspect in the largest jewelry heist in American history to self-deport avoiding trial, accountability, and potential prison time. Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores, 42, was deported late last month despite facing serious federal charges related to a $100 million theft involving diamonds, rubies, gold, and luxury watches.

The shocking lapse is just the latest example of a broken immigration and justice system that routinely prioritizes bureaucratic process over common sense and public safety.

Here’s what happened:

• Flores was one of seven suspects accused of following a Brink’s armored truck after an international jewelry show and stealing dozens of bags of high-value jewels while the drivers were distracted.

• He was out on bail but transferred to ICE custody in September without federal prosecutors being notified of an immigration detainer against him.

• He requested to voluntarily leave the U.S. during a December immigration hearing. Though the judge initially denied his request, Flores was still deported to Ecuador, not even to the country he claimed (Chile).

This wasn’t some petty theft case. Flores was charged with conspiracy to commit theft from interstate and foreign shipments, crimes that carry a 15-year federal prison sentence. But instead of facing trial, he’s now walking free outside U.S. jurisdiction thanks to bureaucratic incompetence or willful neglect.

Federal prosecutors say they were blindsided and opposed dismissing the charges “with prejudice,” meaning they still want to pursue prosecution if Flores ever comes back. Victims, meanwhile, are outraged that justice was derailed by miscommunication between ICE and the DOJ.

“When a defendant in a major federal theft case leaves the country before trial, victims are left without answers, without a verdict, and without closure,” said Jerry Kroll, an attorney representing some of the jewelers.

So how does something like this happen? Under the Biden administration, it’s become all too common.

This is a government that routinely lets criminal suspects walk while punishing law-abiding Americans with regulations, taxes, and endless red tape. It’s a government that has released violent offenders in sanctuary cities, handed over our borders to cartels, and now apparently allows suspects in a $100 million heist to flee the country.

The jewelers already facing millions in losses may never see justice. Brink’s, the security firm involved, is mired in lawsuits. One of the drivers was asleep in the vehicle when the theft occurred, according to court documents. Yet the only person facing real consequences is… no one.

As former federal prosecutor Laurie Levenson put it “It’s just beyond me how they would deport him without the prosecutors being in on the conversation.”

Sadly, under this administration, it’s not that surprising.

This case should be a national scandal. It proves, yet again, that our immigration system isn’t just broken it’s being weaponized through incompetence and indifference. And while elites in Washington play procedural games, real victims suffer, and criminals escape.

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