Javier Salazar, sheriff of Bexar County, Texas, certified that the 49 migrants transferred with deception from San Antonio to the island of Martha's Vineyard, in Massachusetts, were victims of a crime, which would open the way for them to apply for a Visa U, awarded to victims and witnesses of crimes.
This visa category can offer migrants
a path to lawful immigration status in the United States.
"Based on claims that the migrants were transported from Bexar County
under false pretenses
, we are investigating this case as a possible illegal detainer," Salazar said in a statement, according to the local newspaper The Texas Tribune.
Salazar had previously opened a criminal investigation into the transfer of the migrants, arguing that they were "tempted under false pretexts."
Venezuelan migrants gather in front of the San Andrés parish house to board a bus to take them to the Vineyard Haven ferry terminal.
Boston Globe via Getty Images
Rachel Self, a Massachusetts attorney who works with migrants who were "deceived" by an ex-military named Perla Huerta, said that this measure will be key to processing migrants' U visas and that she is collecting photos, videos and interviewing people as part of the investigation.
[Is it true that I can apply for a work permit with a tourist visa?]
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Massachusetts, which represents nine migrants, said these certifications are recognition of "
wrongs done to our clients
and a crucial step in helping them on their way forward. "
".
"Migrants are human beings, not political accessories," said Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts.
Ron DeSantis prepared since July the mobilization of immigrants out of his state, according to a report
Oct. 8, 202200:25
U visas, according to the Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), are granted to "victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and who are useful to law enforcement or government officials." Government in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activities".
[Migrants sent from Texas to Martha's Vineyard and then to a military base were relocated]
Applications, however, usually take about five years to be approved, and
more than 100,000 people are on the program's waiting list
, according to the Department of Homeland Security, as reported by Forbes magazine.
The majority of U visa applications, according to the cited media, were approved between 2016 and 2020, but around 18.5% were denied.
