During a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing, a widow from Missouri chronicled to lawmakers how her husband was allegedly murdered by an illegal immigrant who should have never been in the U.S.
Julie Nordman told members of the Homeland Security Committee’s hearing on immigration law enforcement that Pablo Antonio Serrano-Vitorino, of Mexico, should have been deported.
“In the 18 months before the senseless murder of my husband, this killer has been in custody on three occasions, yet federal officials failed to detain or deport him,” Nordman told the Committee, according to USA Today.
“Had they just done their jobs and followed the laws, my husband would still be alive, and so would the four other innocent victims he brutally murdered,” Nordman said.
In 2004, Serrano-Vitorino was deported, but re-entered the U.S. illegally and was eventually arrested three times before allegedly killing Randy Nordman.
Serrano-Vitorino was arrested for driving without a license, domestic battery, and drunk driving.
Nordman said the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) did not detain or deport Serrano-Vitorino during this time period, despite being told by local law enforcement that the illegal immigrant was in custody.
“ICE mistakenly sent the detainer paperwork to the incorrect location, and it never reached the proper authorities,” Nordman said.
Serrano-Vitorino also faces murder charges in Kansas, where he allegedly killed four men who lived next door to him.
“He went on to kill five completely innocent men,” Nordman continued. “Not only has ICE failed us, but our borders have failed us. They are obviously wide open as this man was able to enter, not once, but twice, without being detected.”
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo) said she did not think Congress should pass any new legislation to help fix the current illegal immigration problem and opposes President Donald Trump’s construction of a border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
McCaskill, instead, blasted ICE for not providing a spokesperson to apologize to the Nordman family over the murder case.
“It’s unfortunate they’re not here today to apologize to you at a minimum,” McCaskill said.
The chairman of the committee, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wi), told Nordman that he would get answers as to why ICE did not detain or deport the illegal immigrant before he allegedly killed five men.
“You have the commitment of this Committee… to get you answers,” Johnson told Nordman.
Trump has made the issue of illegal immigration a key focus in his White House administration. During a joint address to Congress, Trump gave special attention to the families of Michael Davis Jr. and Danny Oliver, the two California law enforcement officers who were killed by an illegal immigrant.
Trump also recognized Jamiel Shaw, the father of Jamiel Shaw Jr., who was killed by an illegal immigrant gang member while stopped at a stop light, thinking he was in an opposition clique.
Trump’s Department of Homeland Security has created the Victims Of Immigration Crime Engagement (VOICE), which will chronicle the crimes committed by illegal immigrants against Americans.
John Binder is a contributor for Breitbart Texas. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.