ICE Shreds Woke Rhode Island Democrat After Arrest of Illegal Immigrant and 'Self-ID'd' MS-13 Member

Democrats and the media continue to be on the wrong side of the issue when it comes to immigration sweeps, as evidenced by their hysterical reactions to things like operations that are conducted in gang/drug-infested parks in states like California, as well as the deportations of violent criminal illegal immigrants arrested across the country.

We've seen it, too, in their hyperventilating over Alligator Alcatraz in Florida, where the media hit pieces are fast and flowing, with the allegations against it taking a rather interesting turn after a group of Democrats recently toured the facility.

"They essentially get their drinking water and they brush their teeth where they poop," Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) proclaimed, apparently not realizing that there are similar setups in many American households.

The latest example comes courtesy of a bust that was made in the state of Rhode Island, with ICE agents taking an illegal immigrant and allegedly "self-admitted" MS-13 gang member into custody in what turned out to be an intense series of events. After the arrest made headlines, it prompted the following response from woke Rhode Island state lawmaker Enrique Sanchez (D):

The Nazi Gestapo ICE thugs kidnapped another of our neighbor in Providence this morning. This time on Alverson st.
The ICE thugs damaged a couple cars that belonged to residents as well. They think they are above the law. I strongly condemn this act of terror and will- be demanding answers and seeking action tomorrow. I am tired of this sh**. Providence doesn’t want ICE thugs in our city.

The Nazi Gestapo ICE thugs kidnapped another of our neighbor in Providence this morning. This time on Alverson st.

The ICE thugs damaged a couple cars that belonged to residents as well. They think they are above the law. I strongly condemn this act of terror and will- pic.twitter.com/45AIqJtkRn
— State Representative Enrique Sanchez (@EnriqueForRI) July 13, 2025

ICE, however, pushed back on Sanchez's story of the arrest of his "neighbor," Ivan Rene-Mendoza Meza, detailing the circumstances around his arrest and shredding Sanchez's priorities in a statement provided to Fox News' Bill Melugin:

ICE was targeting a Honduran known MS-13 gang member, IVAN RENE-MENDOZA MEZA, who had pending local charges in RI for fentanyl trafficking and had been released from local custody with ICE's detainer ignored due to sanctuary policies. I'm told it was the 6th District Court in RI that ignored ICE's detainer.
When ICE agents attempted a traffic stop to arrest MENDOZA MEZA, he struck ICE vehicles before bailing out of his car and running into an apartment. He was surrounded and eventually surrendered. I'm told it was ICE vehicles and his own car that were damaged.

NEW: Rhode Island Democratic state representative @EnriqueForRI calls ICE "Nazi Gestapo thugs" in social media posts criticizing ICE's "kidnapping of our neighbor" in Providence, RI, which he calls an "act of terror", adding that "Providence doesn't want ICE thugs in our city."… pic.twitter.com/knTQs1IfBc
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) July 14, 2025

Here's the statement ICE issued to Fox News:

Mr. Sanchez thinks so little of his community he refers to ruthless MS-13 as "neighbors". What say you, Providence? The only thugs we see are the illegal terrorist gangbangers we are trying to remove from the neighborhoods of Providence.

Incredibly, in the face of all the evidence against Mendoza Meza, which was verified by local news outlets, Sanchez stood behind his words:

"I'm willing to accept my mistake or my error of maybe you know not mentioning that, or defending someone who was dealing with drug trafficking, but in the meantime, I can't stay quiet about this [I.C.E. presence in Providence]," said Sanchez. "I don't hold back my words on how I label the ICE officials....If you choose to not believe history, or watch history, or read history, then that's your problem. But when you do the compare and contrast of the situations in the 40s to what we're dealing with now, it's the same thing."

Previously, he announced he was willing to get "prosecuted and arrested" if it meant stopping ICE operations in Rhode Island (language warning):

Rhode Island Rep Enrique Sanchez @EnriqueForRI is ready to get arrested for interfering w federal law.

He's "ready to go down."

We're ready too, Enrique! You got this!
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/ZdCW1tWEw8
— Nicole Solas, Sued by the Teachers Union (@Nicoletta0602) January 27, 2025

The only arrest he's had so far, however, stemmed from an alleged drunk driving incident back in February. And in 2023, Sanchez introduced a bill he hoped would give illegal immigrants the right to vote in Rhode Island:

When an officer asked Sanchez if he would take a field sobriety test, he asked if he could order an Uber if he refused. An officer told him he would not be able to order an Uber, and he refused to take a field sobriety test at the scene.
In an initial court appearance on the day of his arrest, Sanchez pleaded not guilty to driving while intoxicated, and has since pleaded not guilty to lesser civil charges of refusing a chemical test and failure to obey traffic control devices.
[...]
In 2023, Sanchez filed RI H5461, a bill to give illegal immigrants the right to vote in the state.

Rhode Island Democrat lawmaker arrested for DUI ordered to install car breathalyzer. Rep. Enrique Sanchez during the stop asked if he could order an Uber home during DUI arrest, bodycam shows pic.twitter.com/FbWhqCB1DY
— Globe Alerts (@Globe_Alerts) March 16, 2025

Sounds like a real winner you have on your hands there, Rhode Island Democrats. Keep up the good work.

Editor’s Note: Democrat politicians and their radical supporters will do everything they can to interfere with and threaten ICE agents enforcing our immigration laws.

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