A man who entered the United States illegally and became a TikTok sensation after urging migrants to break into and squatter American homes is believed to be a member of Venezuela’s military intelligence unit, according to a new report.
Leonel Moreno, a 27-year-old “influencer,” was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in March after posting a series of videos advising illegal immigrants to stay home in the United States and mocking Americans over Joe Biden’s surge in illegal immigration.
Since his arrest, immigration authorities have been investigating his past. New York Postthey have discovered Moreno was a sergeant in Venezuela’s General Directorate of Military Intelligence.
The Venezuelan TikTok user entered the US at Eagle Pass, Texas, on April 23, 2022, where he was apprehended by Border Patrol. However, in accordance with President Biden’s capture and release policy, he was immediately released with a date to present himself to ICE. Like many migrants in his situation, he missed that date, and the federal government was unable to track him down until his arrest in Ohio in March.
However, prior to his arrest, Moreno had amassed more than 500,000 followers on TikTok before his account was deleted.
“I learned that there’s a law that says houses that are not occupied can be seized,” Moreno told his followers in Spanish in the video that made him infamous.
The video had been viewed 800,000 times before TikTok removed it.
Moreno pointed to highly controversial “squatters’ rights” laws that exist in various forms across the United States, saying their provisions allow illegal immigrants to “invade” U.S. land.
“Breaking into abandoned houses will be my next job,” he said.
Other videos posted to his social media platforms encouraged illegal immigration and urged migrants to give up on jobs and rely on government assistance or beg on the streets.
“I didn’t cross the Rio Grande to work like a slave,” Moreno said in an Instagram video while waving a stack of $100 bills. report By New York Post.
He further claimed that he had been defrauded of enough money to support himself, his wife, Veronica Torres, and their young daughter.
The Venezuelan national also voiced support for Jesus Alejandro Rivas Figueroa, a 15-year-old immigrant who allegedly shot and killed a woman in New York’s Times Square in February.
“I to you [his] With my mother [for] We all stand together and pay the fine [so] “I hope this young Venezuelan feels that he is not alone in this difficult time,” Moreno told his TikTok followers. “Remember, there is a God in heaven who sees everything.” [down here].”
The undocumented immigrant also portrayed himself as the victim when TikTok deleted his account and banned him from the social media platform.
NEWS: A Venezuelan illegal immigrant who is encouraging other illegal immigrants to stay in U.S. homes is wanted by immigration authorities.
Leonel Moreno was recently outraged after his TikTok account was suspended.
It was later revealed that the reason Moreno was removed from TikTok was because… pic.twitter.com/yGVzub40ty
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 27, 2024
He remains in federal custody.
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