‘He doesn’t deserve to be treated like a criminal’: Effort underway on behalf of man detained by ICE in Elgin Saturday

An effort is being made to clear allegations against a Venezuelan man detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Elgin Saturday.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a press release Monday saying Luis Jesus Acosta Gutierrez is a suspected member of a notorious Venezuelan gang.

But his attorney, Robert Held, said his client is an Elgin resident working to support his family and has no gang affiliation. He said Gutierrez has worked in Chicago in drywall and painting and has also been supporting himself as an Uber driver. He said he is seeking asylum in the U.S., was granted temporary protected status and given a social security number.

“Jesus Gutierrez is an upstanding and outstanding contributing member of our community,” Held said. “He has not been charged with a crime. He has not committed a crime.”

Sandra Davila, a community organizer who is in contact with the family, said he has two young children he is supporting in Venezuela.

In a video, his aunt, Genesis Gutierrez Morales, speaking from Venezuela, said, “He has no criminal record in either the United States or Venezuela. Absolutely nothing. He doesn’t deserve to be treated like a criminal.”

Held said his client was initially detained in Clay County, Indiana, but has been transferred to a facility in Miami County, Indiana. Held said he has working in conjunction with an immigration attorney.

According to DHS officials, Gutierrez was granted temporary protected status in April 2023. That was lifted, DHS said, in November. Held said Gutierrez was unaware that status was lifted.

DHS officials said ICE officers attempted to conduct a vehicle stop, at which point Gutierrez resisted arrest by intentionally ramming an officer’s vehicle into a tree.

Held said the DHS account is inaccurate.

“Federal agents on Saturday rammed his vehicle twice,” Held said.

DHS officials said Gutierrez then fled on foot and barricaded himself in an apartment of a stranger. He then came out on the apartment’s balcony, and agents ultimately negotiated with him to leave the apartment.

Gutierrez was arrested after several hours, during which protesters gathered near the scene.

“(Gutierrez) was savagely beaten by federal agents when they took him into custody,” Held contends. “He did not resist, but they punched him in the face. He has injuries to his jaw, his teeth and he has internal injuries.”

Davila, whose background includes being a member of the Elgin Human Relations Commission, said Gutierrez’s car is missing.

“His immigrant documentation was in the car,” she said. “His passport is in the car.”

She said a crowdfunding campaign is in the works to support Gutierrez.