Serrano Criticizes DHS Statement Ruling Out Extradition for Luis Posada

Washington, DC, May 19, 2005—Today, Congressman José E. Serrano (D-NY) expressed his support for the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) decision to “finally” arrest terrorist suspect Luis Posada Carriles, but raised concerns about an ICE statement that ruled out his extradition to Venezuela, in seeming violation of the ’s international treaty obligations.

Posada, a virulent anti-Castro militant, has been linked to the 1976 bombing of a civilian jetliner that killed 73 people, many of them children, and a 1997 series of deadly bombings at tourist hotels in Havana.  Arrested and detained in for the jetliner bombing, he escaped from prison in 1985 after supporters paid a $28,000 bribe to his prison guard.  He went into hiding, and much later admitted responsibility for the
Havana
bombings in an interview with the New York Times several years ago.  Several weeks ago, he appeared in south
Florida
where he lived under the protection of supporters there.  He was finally apprehended Tuesday after bragging publicly about eluding Homeland Security (DHS) officials and wondering aloud in a press conference why he hadn’t yet been apprehended.

“While I’m glad that DHS finally arrested Posada, it’s amazing that he almost had to goad them into doing it,” said Serrano.  “It would have been wildly hypocritical of us to let this man with a terrorism indictment on his head live in our midst while at the same time we’re asking other countries to help us with our effort against anti-American terrorists.”

In a bizarre day of twists and turns, which saw Posada give a secret press conference only to be arrested shortly thereafter, perhaps the oddest moment came with the release of a statement on the Posada arrest from ICE.  In the statement, ICE said that it would not deport Posada to or to , despite the still open proceedings against him related to the airline bombing.  ICE “does not generally remove people to , nor does ICE generally remove people to countries believed to be acting on ’s behalf,” said the statement.

But Venezuelan Vice President José Vicente Rangel has made it clear that will not extradite Posada to , only that it wants to continue with the judicial proceedings on the airline bombing left pending by his escape twenty years ago. 

“That ICE statement is one of the most bizarre things I’ve seen in a long while,” said Serrano.  “Here’s a guy who has admitted to committing terrorist attacks, who escaped justice by bribing his guards and high-tailing it out of prison, and we’re not willing to extradite him to face justice?  73 people died in that airliner, many of them children.  How can we with any credibility ask other nations to help us out with our global struggle against terror when we won’t cooperate with other nations’ anti-terror proceedings?  There is a two-way street here.  Clearly, ICE should retract its ridiculous and highly unusual statement and take ’s extradition request seriously.  Posada was a wanted man in long before Hugo Chavez was elected President there.”

The has an extradition treaty with that would require the extradition of someone like Posada in a case such as this.  Serrano recently sent a letter to President Bush, signed by several other members of Congress, requesting that the adhere to ’s extradition request.  The letter is available upon request.