President Barack Obama’s gutting of enforcement of immigration laws claimed another life, this time in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Mirta Rivera, a 41-year-old nurse and grandmother who was an American citizen born in Puerto Rico, was shot and killed early in the morning on July 4 as she lay in her bed by a bullet that came through the ceiling of her apartment beneath illegal alien drug dealers, according to police. Three men have been arrested, two of them are illegal aliens. Both men were known to be illegal aliens and freed by the Obama administration.
Illegal aliens Jose Lara-Mejia (white t-shirt) and Wilton Lara-Calmona (plaid shirt) in court. Photo, WHDH-TV.
The Boston Herald has done in depth reporting on the case which has been ignored by the national media.
“Deportation orders failed to oust two illegal immigrants who are now up on drug charges and under investigation in the July 4 shooting death of a Lawrence grandmother — in an alarming case that critics say illustrates a revolving immigration door with dangerous consequences.
“Dominican Republic nationals Wilton Lara-Calmona and Jose M. Lara-Mejia were arrested on drug charges by police investigating the shooting death of Mirta Rivera, 41. The Lawrence nurse was killed in her sleep by a gunshot fired through the ceiling from an upstairs apartment, where both men lived.
“But Immigration and Customs Enforcement records reviewed by the Herald show the men shouldn’t have been in the country in the first place.
“Lara-Calmona, 38, was deported in April 2012 and arrested for re-entering the country last November, the records show.
“Lara-Mejia, 35, was nabbed crossing the border in August 2013 and ordered deported in April 2014, but had remained in the country illegally.
“ICE spokesman Shawn Neudauer confirmed that Lara-Mejia “was ordered removed by a federal immigration judge on April 9, 2014, after failing to appear before the immigration court. He was considered an ICE fugitive until his July 4, 2015, arrest by local authorities in Lawrence, Massachusetts.”
Click here to read the complete Boston Herald article.
The Boston Globe reported on the shooting and preliminary charges.
“Mirta Rivera was asleep Saturday morning when a bullet pierced through a hardwood floor in the apartment above, hitting her in the abdomen, traveling through her mattress and into the floor before bouncing back into her box spring.
“Rivera’s boyfriend, Jorge Villalta, and responding officers tried to save her, but the 41-year-old woman was pronounced dead at Lawrence General Hospital.
“Moments after the shooting, police discovered a bullet hole in the ceiling above Rivera’s bed, leading officers to a second-floor unit where they found three men, a woman, heroin and cocaine worth about $75,000, a scale, material for packaging drugs and firearms. When officers entered the unit around 4:26 a.m., the fresh stench of gunpowder hung in the air, police said.
“Christopher Paganmoux, 23; Jose Lara-Mejia, 35; and Wilton Lara-Calmona, 38, were arraigned on charges of trafficking in heroin over 200 grams, trafficking in cocaine over 14 grams, and possession with intent to distribute a Class A substance near a school or park, according to court records.”
…”Lawrence District Court Judge Lynn Rooney ordered Paganmoux, who faces an additional charge of trafficking heroine over 14 grams, held on $250,000 cash bail. Lara-Mejia and Lara-Calmona were ordered held on $500,000 cash bail.
“Police found a black handgun between the mattress and box spring of a bed in the apartment on Exchange Street, court records show, as well as drug paraphernalia and a rifle.
“A “mushroomed” bullet found in Rivera’s box spring matched the rifle and a casing that was found, police said.”