NEWYou can listen to Fox News articles now!A man died after a brutal stabbing in a San Francisco Hospital and now federal officials are pointing directly at California’s Sanctuary policies and the Biden Administration’s border decisions.U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is urging state officials and Governor Gavin Newsom not to release Wilfredo Jose Turtolero-Arriechi, a Venezuelan who was in the country illegally and had been previously encountered and released by Border Patrol. DHS TAKES VICTORY LAAP AFTER ARRESTING OVER 10,000 ILLEGAL ALIENS DESPITE VIOLENT RIOTS”If it wasn’t for the Biden Administration’s reckless open-border policy, Alberto Rangel might still be alive,” said Acting Assistant Sec Lauren Bis in a statement. She directly tied the killing to federal migration policy. She also called for Newsom to make sure the suspect was not released. She said sanctuary policies “put American lives in danger”. Exclusive: ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS RELEASED UNDER BIEDEN’S ‘CATCH-AND-RELEASE’ ALLEGEDLY KILL DRIVER IN A POLICE CHASEFederal authorities say Tortolero Arriechi was first encountered in 2023 by U.S. Border Patrol and then released into this country. Since January 2026, California jurisdictions refused to honor ICE’s detainers on more than 4,500 occasions. ICE reported that the released individuals were linked to dozens homicides, hundreds assaults, and a variety of other violent and drugs-related offenses. Acting ICE director Todd Lyons wrote to California Attorney General Rob Bonta in February to urge him to “put Americans’ safety first” by honoring the detainers of more than 33,000 criminally illegal immigrants held in state custody. Lyons warned that no community serious about its residents’ safety would tolerate a “clear aberration of law,” and urged California officials to cooperate ICE to take “the worst offenders off the streets.” “Meanwhile… federal officials are now using Alberto Rangel’s death to highlight what they claim are the real-world effects of those policies. A spokesperson for Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital that if someone commits a serious offense, they should be held responsible in our justice system. “To allow someone to escape responsibility by simply being deported undermines rule of law, and shows complete disrespect to the victims who were harmed by this crime. We must ensure that those who commit violent crimes face the consequences in this country. “CLICK HERE FOR MORE US NEWSThe governor’s office also pointed to California’s record of cooperating with federal immigration authorities in certain cases, noting that, since 2019, the state has coordinated the transfer of more than 12,000 individuals, including those convicted of serious and violent crimes, into ICE custody.Officials added that state law allows coordination with ICE for individuals convicted of serious felonies or those facing credible charges, and said California does not interfere with federal immigration enforcement.CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APPThey also argued that federal authorities do not always take custody of individuals when detainers are issued, claiming ICE fails to pick up roughly one in eight people released from state prisons who have immigration holds.Tortolero-Arriechi remains in custody at the San Francisco County Jail, where he faces homicide and weapons charges, as pressure mounts on California leaders over whether they will comply with federal requests to keep him there.In a statement issued after his death in December 2025, SEIU Local 521 Chief Elected Officer Riko Mendez said, “Our hearts are with the family, friends, and coworkers of Alberto Rangel,” remembering him as a dedicated social worker.
