Boxing Star Chavez Jr. Arrested By US Immigration

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., a former world champion and son of legendary Mexican fighter Julio Cesar Chavez, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

The Department of Homeland Security announced that Chavez Jr. faces deportation from the United States due to an active arrest warrant in Mexico for his alleged involvement in organized crime and trafficking firearms, ammunition, and explosives.

According to Homeland Security, Chavez Jr. is believed to have ties to the Sinaloa cartel, a Mexican drug trafficking group designated as a terrorist organization by the United States.

The Mexican public prosecutor’s office confirmed that Mexico issued an arrest warrant for Chavez Jr. in 2023 for organized crime and arms trafficking.

Chavez Jr.’s arrest comes just days after his loss to YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in a cruiserweight bout at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. His lawyer, Michael A. Goldstein, described the arrest as “outrageous” and claimed that ICE agents detained Chavez Jr. outside his residence with excessive force, leaving his family unaware of his whereabouts.

“The current allegations are outrageous and appear to be designed as a headline to terrorize the community,” Goldstein said.

Homeland Security, however, stated that Chavez Jr. had entered the United States legally in 2023 on a tourist visa but was determined to be in the country illegally after applying for permanent residency based on his marriage to a US citizen with ties to the Sinaloa cartel.

Chavez Jr.’s immigration issues have sparked controversy, with authorities accusing the previous administration under President Joe Biden of not prioritizing his removal despite being flagged as an “egregious public safety threat.”

In contrast, the current administration under President Donald Trump has taken a stricter stance on immigration, aiming to speed up deportations and reduce border crossings.

The Chavez family expressed support for Julio Jr., stating, “Our family is deeply dismayed by the situation. We fully trust in his innocence and his humanity, as well as in the justice institutions in both Mexico and the United States.”

Chavez Jr., a WBC middleweight world title winner in 2011, owns a record of 54-7 with one draw but has faced multiple suspensions and fines for failed drug tests.

Prior to his bout with Paul, he expressed concerns about immigration arrests in the US, saying, “I don’t understand the situation why so much violence? There are a lot of good people, and you’re giving the community an example of violence. After everything that’s happened, I wouldn’t want to be deported”

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