**Father of Marine Detained by Immigration Authorities Has Criminal Record, DHS Confirms**
SAN DIEGO — The father of a Marine who was arrested by immigration authorities while visiting his pregnant daughter at Camp Pendleton has a criminal record that includes charges of domestic violence and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) revealed Thursday.
Esteban Rios was deported to Mexico in 1999, removed from the United States again in 2005, and ordered deported by an immigration judge in 2020 after entering the country illegally a third time, DHS said.
This statement marked the first detailed account Homeland Security provided since the Marine, Steve Rios, said last week that his father was detained after visiting the Southern California military base. Esteban was initially released with ankle monitors but was detained again when reporting days later to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office, as ordered.
Homeland Security initially declined to provide details when The Associated Press (AP) inquired multiple times on Tuesday about any criminal record Esteban Rios might have. The agency only said, “criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S.” and stated it had no other information to release.
However, one day after AP published a story on Esteban Rios, and two days after requesting details from the department, DHS released the detailed account of his criminal record. The department also accused the AP of having “deliberately obscured the facts,” despite not providing the AP with the information it claimed was obscured.
Steve Rios, a Marine from Oceanside, told San Diego station KNSD that his parents inspired him to enlist. He said the family came to the U.S. from Mexico more than 30 years ago and had worked washing cars and cleaning houses throughout his life.
“It was just making them proud, right? I’ve seen all the struggles they’ve gone through,” Steve said. “The least I could do, right, and serve this country and try to, you know, put some time in.”
Steve explained that he and his parents were picking up his younger sister and her husband, who is also a Marine, at Camp Pendleton on September 28 — a routine they have maintained every weekend for the past few months while she is expecting her first child.
After stopping at the base gate, ICE officials arrived to detain both parents, later releasing them with ankle monitors. Steve said his father was deported on October 10.
The Rios family told KNSD that the parents had no criminal record, had pending green card applications sponsored by Steve, and were authorized to work.
In response to AP’s inquiries, Tricia McLaughlin, a Homeland Security spokeswoman, issued a statement on Tuesday: “Under President (Donald) Trump and Secretary (Kristi) Noem, if you break the law including domestic violence and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon you will face the consequences. Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S.”
The statement did not mention Esteban Rios’s arrest, any charges, or his immigration history.
When AP followed up asking if Esteban Rios and his wife had criminal histories, Luis Alani, a communications strategist at ICE, responded, “By statute, ICE has no information on these aliens. To clarify, there is no information we can release.”
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*This developing story highlights the complexities surrounding immigration enforcement and family ties to military service.*
https://timesofsandiego.com/uncategorized/immigration/2025/10/17/marines-father-who-was-deported-has-criminal-record-homeland-security-says/
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