News Americas, New York, NY, May 23, 2025: In a controversial deportation operation that is drawing legal and humanitarian scrutiny, the Trump administration has reportedly sent Caribbean immigrants as well to South Sudan – one of the world’s most unstable regions – despite a federal court order prohibiting such transfers without proper legal review.
According to court filings and a ruling by Judge Brian E. Murphy in Boston, eight foreign nationals, including two from the Caribbean nation of Cuba, were deported to the war-torn African nation earlier this month.
The court described the transfer as a violation of a prior order restricting deportations to third countries. Judge Murphy has now ordered a new round of interviews with the deported individuals, either back in the U.S. or abroad, underscoring what many see as a reckless immigration enforcement practice under the Trump administration. The administration is now holding the deportees in Djibouti after Judge Murphy said the government “unquestionably” violated a court order. He ordered the administration to maintain custody and control” of the migrants.
The two from Cuba are:
Enrique Arias-Hierro, 46, served 15 years in a Florida state prison following a 2007 conviction for robbery, kidnapping, and impersonating a police officer. The Department of Homeland Security also alleged prior convictions for homicide and armed robbery, although these were not documented in publicly available Miami-Dade County court records. Arias-Hierro had been ordered deported to Cuba in 1999 and did not file an appeal.
Jose Manuel Rodriguez-Quinones was convicted of arson in 2008 and sentenced to 15 years. He subsequently faced multiple convictions including drug trafficking and possession of a weapon. In 2022, he was convicted of attempted first-degree murder and sentenced to four years. It remains unclear whether he was granted a hearing before an immigration judge prior to his recent removal by ICE.
ICE officials defended the deportations, labeling judicial interventions as the actions of “activist judges” who they claim are undermining public safety. But critics argue that the removals represent a dangerous disregard for due process and international human rights, particularly when sending individuals to nations with known civil unrest and humanitarian crises. Cuba does not accept criminal immigrants back to their country.
South Sudan, the destination for these deportations, has been engulfed in conflict and famine for years. Deporting individuals with no ties to the country – and without adequate legal procedures – raises serious concerns about their safety and the legality of such actions under U.S. and international law.
This latest incident is likely to fuel ongoing debates about the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement tactics, especially as legal advocates continue to push for greater oversight and accountability.
