Follow Up on ICE Arrest in Champaign
La lucha continua
I’m writing this follow up to an article I published on March 13, 2025 at my Substack newsletter about a large group of federal agents that arrested a Guatemalan man at his house located on the North End of Champaign.
I have since been contacted by Alejandra Coronel Griffet through her attorney Steven Beckett who clarified her role in the arrest that day. I was mistaken to characterize this as an immigration “raid,” as agents were not indiscriminately arresting individuals. Agents were there to serve a warrant on a specific individual. According to Ms. Coronel Griffet, she was merely an interpreter for the federal agents, which I accept as an explanation of her involvement. She was not a leader of an immigration raid. I was mistaken and I apologize for any harm that may have come to her reputation in the community. I deleted the article.
I have since obtained records for the arrest. The Guatemalan man was indicted for what is called felony reentry, also known as a “1326” charge. According to the indictment, he was deported “on or about” Nov. 19, 2021, “at or near” Alexandria, Louisiana. He was found in the United States after having been removed in violation of Title 8 US Code Section 1326. The indictment is signed by U.S. Attorney Gregory M. Gilmore.
If found guilty, the man will likely be sent to a “CAR prison” (which stands for Criminal Alien Requirement) like the one I wrote about in Michigan in 2019 for In These Times. These are prisons specifically for individuals that have twice crossed the border and been caught. Typically, people will spend two years in a CAR prison, maybe longer, and then they are deported after serving their sentence.
The North Lake Correctional Facility which I wrote about, a private prison in rural Baldwin, Michigan, was closed in 2022 by then President Biden. According to documents acquired by the ACLU through a FOIA request, the North Lake prison is on a list to be reopened by President Trump, part of a proposal costing up to $45 billion. Activists with the group No Detention Centers in Michigan are trying to stop the prison’s reopening.
Meanwhile, ICE arrests continue in the local area. I have confirmed one man was arrested by ICE agents outside of a day care after dropping his daughter off. His wife was with him in the car and witnessed the arrest. The family has asked for privacy, so that is all the details I’m providing. In this case and others, I always want to put community concerns before my own interests.