OLATHE, Kansas — A Kansas man with no criminal history was arrested by federal agents and deported within three weeks, igniting renewed concerns about civil rights violations under the Trump administration’s expanded immigration enforcement. The 25-year-old Julio Rojas was pursued by a roving ICE patrol in August, restrained with a knee on his neck, shackled, and transferred between multiple detention centers before being placed on a 2 a.m. flight to El Salvador — all without seeing a judge or speaking to an attorney.
Rojas had lived in Olathe for nine years, working for telecommunications companies and raising a son who remains in the U.S. with his mother, a permanent resident. His only prior legal infraction was a $100 traffic ticket in 2018. ICE agents had no warrant when they detained him, a pattern that immigration attorneys say has become commonplace in the Kansas City region amid aggressive federal crackdowns.
Attorney Genevra Alberti described ICE’s tactics — masked agents in unmarked vehicles, unexplained detentions, and traffic stops without legal authority — as “being on steroids,” adding that many arrests targeted individuals solely based on appearance. Federal data shows more than 70% of August detainees had no criminal record.
Rojas said conditions during his detention were harsh, including inadequate clothing, limited phone access, and lack of due process. He hopes to someday return legally but says life in El Salvador has been difficult.
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