The Department of Homeland Security just announced the deportation of a guy who was basically collecting gang affiliations like loyalty cards at a coffee shop. Isaias Jose Rodriguez-Manzanares, an illegal alien from Honduras, managed to be a self-admitted MS-13 gang member AND an associate of the Cartel del Noreste drug cartel, because apparently one violent criminal organization just was not enough for this overachiever.
As The American Tribune reported, DHS confirmed that ICE removed Rodriguez-Manzanares on June 20 to his country of origin. For those keeping score, MS-13 is the notoriously violent Salvadoran gang that El Salvador's President Bukele has been stomping into oblivion. The Cartel del Noreste is a splinter group from Los Zetas, which is saying something because Los Zetas were already the cartels that other cartels looked at and said "those guys are a bit much." The Cartel del Noreste controls the border city of Nuevo Laredo and makes its money through extortion, migrant smuggling, and taxing border crossings.
Here is where the story gets fun. Immigration officials first encountered Rodriguez-Manzanares back in January 2024 after the Irving Police Department arrested him for a liquor violation. His MS-13 affiliation was known to authorities at that point. So what did the Biden administration do with this information? Absolutely nothing. Despite his known ties to violent smuggling and gang networks that have since been designated foreign terrorist organizations, they took no action to detain or remove him.
So naturally, Rodriguez-Manzanares used his freedom productively. On June 16, 2025, the Colleyville Police Department arrested him for manufacturing or distributing a controlled substance and unlawfully carrying a weapon. The charges were eventually reduced, and on December 19, 2025, he was convicted of felony possession of a controlled substance and sentenced to two years in prison. Once he completed his sentence, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice transferred him to ICE custody on May 20.
Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis did not mince words about the situation, saying, "Thanks to ICE law enforcement, this criminal illegal alien and MS-13 gang member and cartel associate is OUT of our country." She also pointed out that "The Biden administration took no action to detain this criminal illegal alien following his criminal arrests and allowed this gang member to roam free in our communities."
Bis added that Texas law enforcement cooperated with ICE to make the removal happen, noting, "It is no coincidence that 7 of the 10 safest cities in the U.S. cooperate with ICE."
So to recap: a dual gang and cartel affiliate was caught, released, caught again committing more crimes, served his time, and was finally deported. The system works, it just apparently needed a different administration to actually turn the key.
Read more American news stories at: The American Tribune
