ICE investigations keep turning up people who slipped into positions of public trust by faking or exploiting paperwork, and recent cases from Iowa, Illinois, and New Orleans show the problem goes beyond low-wage jobs into school districts and police departments where deeper vetting should be standard.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been doing the kind of work many expect from federal enforcement: tracking down people in the country illegally who are holding jobs that require high levels of trust. These are not the stereotypical roles people say “Americans won’t do.” Instead, many of these individuals landed in administrative and law enforcement positions through paperwork tricks and system gaps. That undermines public safety and erodes confidence in institutions that should prioritize Americans.
In Des Moines, a former school superintendent pled guilty to false statements and illegal firearms possession after overstaying a visa. He had lived in and out of the country for decades, claimed advanced degrees, and led a school system while collecting a salary far beyond entry-level roles. That case shows how attractive high-profile educational posts are to fraudsters, and how damaging it is when a district entrusts its kids and taxpayer dollars to someone who misrepresented themselves.
Another recent arrest involved a suburban Illinois police officer who entered on a tourist visa and never left after it expired. He was placed on unpaid administrative leave pending the outcome of his immigration case and released from custody on bond. When local departments hire based on superficial checks, the risks spread outward into communities that expect officers to be above reproach.
The most troubling example involves a New Orleans Police Department recruit arrested by ICE one week before graduating from the academy. According to reporting, the recruit allegedly entered legally in 2015, later had a residency application denied for fraud, and was ordered removed in absentia after failing to appear in immigration court. That kind of background should trigger comprehensive review, not a rubber-stamp hire.
NEW: ICE confirms to @foxnews that they’ve arrested a New Orleans Police Department recruit who they say is an illegal alien from Cameroon with an active deportation order & no work authorization, & they say he was illegally given a gun by New Orleans PD.
ICE says 46-year-old Larry Temah was one week away from graduating the New Orleans PD academy when they arrested him. They say Temah first entered the US legally in 2015 on a visitor’s visa and was granted conditional residency after marrying a US citizen in 2016. However, in 2022, his application for permanent residency was denied to due to fraud.
ICE says Temah was ordered to appear in immigration court three times, but never did, disregarding US laws, which resulted in an immigration judge ordering him deported in absentia, resulting in his active deportation order.
DHS statement to FOX: “This illegal alien from Cameroon, Larry Temah, is not only breaking the law with every step he takes in this country illegally, but the New Orleans Police Department hired him and issued him a firearm – what kind of law enforcement department gives criminal illegal aliens guns and badges? It’s a FELONY for illegal aliens to even possess a firearm. Sanctuary cities like New Orleans ignore ICE detainers and are protecting illegal aliens at the expense of American citizens.”
The department claims basic checks showed a valid driver’s license, Social Security number, and a passed federal E-Verify screen. Those are surface-level checks that can be gamed and are not substitutes for thorough credential and immigration history verification. Law enforcement hires should trigger background investigations that dig deeper than the paperwork for clerical positions.
Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said the department had no indication during hiring that the recruit lacked legal status and that the order of removal came after he was hired. She also noted there was no struggle when ICE took the recruit into custody. That response, framed as routine, raises questions about accountability and process failures inside a department responsible for public safety.
“We learned about it this morning,” Kirkpatrick said Wednesday. “There was no struggle involved. The recruit was taken into custody without any incident whatsoever.”
Kirkpatrick declined to identify the recruit, referring questions on his identity to ICE. Fox News Digital has reached out to ICE for additional details.
She said the department had no indication during the hiring process that the individual was not legally in the U.S.
“There was nothing in the [personnel] packet that would have given us reason to believe that this person did not have legal status,” she said. “There is some question that may have developed later.”
Hiring a 46-year-old recruit without prior law enforcement experience stands out and invites scrutiny about recruitment priorities. Why bend standards when there are younger applicants who meet physical and background expectations? A police force that treats hiring as a checkbox exercise puts communities at risk and hands critics ammunition to call out lax oversight.
Towns with policies that ignore ICE detainers or treat paperwork as the final word create loopholes criminals and fraudsters can exploit. Elected officials and department leaders must answer how such gaps remain open when the consequence is armed individuals with unresolved immigration orders joining law enforcement ranks. These cases show the cost of trusting paperwork over rigorous verification.
When public institutions hand out positions of trust on incomplete or superficial verification, American citizens lose out and safety is compromised. Departments need clear procedures, timely communication with federal authorities, and a commitment to rigorous vetting that leaves no room for fraud. Otherwise, stories like these will keep popping up across the country.
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