Iowa superintendent detained by ICE falsely claimed he was a US citizen, indictment says

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The former superintendent of Iowa’s largest school district has been indicted by a federal grand jury after authorities said he falsely claimed to be a U.S. citizen who was eligible to work.

A two-count indictment returned Thursday evening by a federal grand jury in Des Moines charges Ian Roberts with one count of making a false statement for employment and one count of being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm.

Roberts, who is originally from Guyana and worked for two decades in school districts across the country, was detained Sept. 26 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in a targeted operation.

Authorities said Roberts fled from agents in his district-issued Jeep Cherokee before being found in a wooded area. Roberts had a handgun wrapped in a towel inside the car, investigators said.

Des Moines Public Schools hired Ian Roberts in 2023 to lead its district of about 30,000 students.

The indictment alleges that he made a “false attestation” on a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Employment Eligibility Verification form, known as an I-9, claiming he was a U.S. citizen when he knew he was not.

Roberts’ attorney, Alfredo Parrish, didn’t immediately return a phone message.

Federal authorities said an immigration judge issued a final removal order last year, and an appeal to reopen immigration proceedings was rejected earlier this year.

After his detention by ICE, Roberts was transferred to federal custody Oct. 2 on an arrest warrant and charged with unlawfully possessing firearms while being in the U.S. illegally. In addition to the one in his vehicle when he was arrested, three other weapons were found during a search of Roberts’ home, authorities said. The indictment mentions all four weapons, including two pistols, a rifle and a shotgun.

The district continues to face the fallout, filing a lawsuit against the consulting firm it used to facilitate the superintendent search in 2023. After an AP investigation identified a history of Roberts’ school districts hiring a firm that marketed him as a consultant, Jackie Norris, school board chair, proposed a review of his expenditures in Des Moines. Norris also ended her campaign for U.S. Senate on Thursday.

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Foley reported from Iowa City, Iowa.