NEW YORK – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) removed a French national Wednesday who was wanted for causing death/manslaughter/murder in his home country.

ERO deportation officers escorted Fode Youssouf Barro, 29, who was removed from the United States via a commercial flight. Barro was transferred into the custody of French law enforcement authorities upon arrival in Paris.

“This individual sought harbor within our borders while he was wanted to face murder charges in his home country,” said Thomas Decker, field office director for ERO New York. “Barro has now been removed from the United States, solidifying ICE’s commitment to protecting the American public from criminal aliens.”

According to French authorities, as outlined in an European arrest warrant, in January 2016, Barro, along with others, is alleged to have been an accomplice in a homicide in Troyes, France, in which the victim was killed from multiple blows to the head with a hammer.

In May 2017, Barro entered the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) with authorization to remain in the United States until August 2017. In June 2017, the French authorities issued an arrest warrant for Barro for his involvement in a homicide. Barro failed to depart the United States in August 2017, as required. In December 2017, the U.S. Marshals Service notified ERO New York that Barro, who was residing in New York City, was being sought in France to face criminal charges for being an accomplice in a homicide.

On Dec.11, 2017, ERO New York arrested Barro, processed him as a VWP violator and served him with a final administrative order, paving the way for his removal to France.

Since Oct. 1, 2009, ERO has removed more than 1,700 foreign fugitives from the United States who were sought in their native countries for serious crimes, including kidnapping, rape and murder. In fiscal year 2016, ICE conducted 240,255 removals nationwide. Ninety-two percent of individuals removed from the interior of the United States had previously been convicted of a criminal offense.