Leonel Moreno, a Venezuelan national, gained notoriety encouraging compatriots to illegally come to America and live as squatters.
The illegal immigrant who attracted a massive following on TikTok offering his comrades tips on how to take over people’s homes has been arrested by the feds.
Leonel Moreno, a citizen of Venezuela, gained notoriety encouraging “fellow Venezuelans” to illegally come to the United States and live as squatters.
“If a house is not inhabited, we can seize it,” he told his 507,000 TikTok followers in a recent video that has drawn more than 3.9 million views. He went on to claim that he has “African friends” who have “already taken about seven homes.”
In a statement on Friday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said Mr. Moreno was caught by the agency’s enforcement and removal operations team in Gahanna, a city in suburban Columbus, Ohio.
“Leonel Moreno is an unlawfully present citizen of Venezuela, who illegally entered the country April 23, 2022,” the statement read. “Moreno was placed into the ATD [Alternatives to Detention] program by Border Patrol and was told to report to Enforcement and Removal Operations office within 60 days of arriving at his destination.”
“Moreno did not report as required,” ICE noted. “On March 29, 2024, Moreno was arrested in Gahanna, Ohio by officers with ERO Detroit’s Columbus office and is currently detained pending further immigration proceedings.”
TikToker Triggers Outrage
In one of his videos, Mr. Moreno claimed he studied to be an engineer at Venezuela’s Fermin Toro University, and that he traveled through 12 countries to get to the United States.
He also alleged that he had tried to seek asylum with his wife in Canada last year but eventually came to the United States, where his family gets more government handouts.
“They didn’t give us the hotel they promised,” he said in a video posted to his Instagram account last year, speaking of how he was treated in Canada. “They gave us a month and then kicked us out, and didn’t give us the papers they promised. They didn’t give us a job and didn’t give us asylum.”
By Bill Pan
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