CHAMBERSBURG – Despite public outcry over the deportation to Mexico of Carlos Bonilla, a custodian at Fall Springs Elementary School and the local YMCA, Franklin County Sheriff Benjamin Sites said information concerning Bonilla is incorrect.
As a partner of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security, the sheriff said his office was not part of Bonilla’s removal, though a statement obtained from ICE by the sheriff indicated the man the agency refers to as Carlos Bonilla-Yanez has been deported multiple times and returned to the U.S., at least once with government approval.
See related story from his family’s perspective
A Dec. 20 community rally is planned to protest the deportation of Carlos Bonilla, described as a devoted father and grandfather and a deeply respected neighbor.
He has lived in the United States since the 1990s and in Chambersburg for more than 20 years, said march organizer Amy Weibley, whose children attend the school where Bonilla worked. Bonilla was a legal non-citizen who followed immigration requirements, held a Pennsylvania Real ID, had a U.S. Social Security number for work and passed required background checks. He has no criminal record, Weibley said.
“He was transferred through multiple detention facilities across several states under inhumane conditions and deported without a hearing on Dec. 9,” Weibley said. “He was left in Nogales, Mexico, with almost nothing, without access to his diabetes medication or medical care. He has since traveled to Guadalajara to stay with family while awaiting care.”
Bonilla “deeply misses his daughter and grandson and the children at Falling Spring Elementary, whom he loved helping,” Weibley added. “His story is not unique—and that injustice demands a response.”
The ICE statement said, ICE can confirm that officers took Bonilla‑Yanez into ICE custody on Nov. 28 in York and subsequently removed him to Mexico pursuant to a prior removal order that had been re-instated.
“According to agency records, Bonilla‑Yanez first unlawfully entered the United States in 1998 and was removed to Mexico,” the ICE statement said. “In 2000, Bonilla-Yanez attempted to unlawfully re-enter the United States using fraudulent documents. He was arrested and charged with illegal entry under Title 8, U.S. Code, Section 1325, and removed to Mexico.”
In 2018, officers arrested Bonilla‑Yanez, re-instated his prior removal order, and released him from ICE custody as a matter of discretion, to allow him the opportunity to make arrangements for his minor daughter..
Bonilla‑Yanez was required to report regularly to the York office while he made arrangements to depart the U.S. on his own accord, but he never left, ICE said. So ICE carried out the previously re-instated removal order.
“Any state-issued identifications, Social Security cards issued for work authorization, or the absence of criminal convictions does not confer lawful immigration status, nor negate a final order of removal,” the ICE statement continued.
While the statement said “ICE focuses immigration enforcement resources on aliens who pose a threat to national security, public safety and border security,” the fact that Bonilla had no criminal record does not apply. “ICE is also committed to executing final orders of removals. All enforcement actions are conducted in accordance with U.S. law and DHS policy.”
In the meantime, Bonilla’s wife, daughter and grandchild are left with little income. Two parents, one in tears, spoke out on Bonilla’s behalf at the Chambersburg Area School District board meeting this week, with no response from board members or staff. The district has declined comment and has not indicated how Bonilla was able to obtain a clear I-9 required for employment as someone here illegally.
