MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A man who was falsely accused of threatening to assassinate President Donald Trump and threatened with deportation to Mexico was released Thursday from a Wisconsin jail on bond, three weeks after federal immigration agents arrested him.
Ramón Morales Reyes, 54, was accused of a writing a letter threatening Trump in a social media post by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that got widespread national coverage. The post includes Morales Reyes’ photo and an excerpt from the letter he purportedly wrote in English. But the claims quickly fell apart as Wisconsin authorities determined that Reyes, who doesn’t speak English well or write in the language, was framed.
Morales Reyes was a victim in a violent 2023 attack where his bike was stolen. According to authorities, the alleged attacker, Demetric D. Scott, forged the letter to try to clear his case. Morales Reyes was set to be a witness in Scott’s July trial for armed robbery and aggravated battery.
Morales Reyes was released in the afternoon after paying the $7,500 bond that an immigration judge set on Tuesday. Speaking to WISN-TV, Morales Reyes said he and his lawyer will fight his deportation.
“I believe (the lawyer) knows the history and all of you know what happened,” he said.
He was later met by relatives and members of the Milwaukee-based immigrant rights group Voces de la Frontera, which has helped work on his case.
Christine Neumann-Ortiz, the organization’s executive director, said Morales Reyes was “relieved” and “very grateful for all of the support he’s received.”
Judge Carla Espinoza said at the immigration court hearing in Chicago that Morales Reyes was not a threat to the community.
Morales Reyes, a married father of three U.S. citizen children, works as a dishwasher in Milwaukee.
He was arrested by immigration agents last month after dropping a child off at school. He immigrated from Mexico in the 1980s and doesn’t have legal permission to be in the U.S. This year, he applied for a U visa, which is for people in the country illegally who are victims of serious crimes. Getting such a visa can take years.
Homeland Security issued a statement to reporters last week saying that although Morales Reyes was no longer considered a threat to Trump, federal attorneys would still pursue an immigration case. The government alleges that Morales Reyes reentered the U.S. numerous times without a visa.
Morales Reyes had been held in the Dodge Detention Center in Juneau, about 70 miles (113 kilometers) north of Milwaukee. He was released after the federal government did not appeal the setting of his bond.
Noem’s social media post blaming Morales Reyes for an assassination attempt, which was circulated by Trump supporters, remains online.
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Tareen reported from Chicago.
