NYC Council staffer detained by ICE after Trump admin scrapped Biden-era program for Venezuelans

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained a City Council staffer after President Trump ended a Biden-era legal protection program for Venezuelans, records reviewed by The Post show. 

Rafael Andres Rubio Bohorquez, 53, was labeled an “illegal alien” with a criminal history by federal authorities after he was taken into custody on Long Island Monday — but city officials have maintained he has done nothing wrong and had permission to be in the US.

The data analyst, who was hired in January 2025, was arrested for third-degree assault causing physical injury in Queens in March 2023 – but that charge was later wiped clean from his record, sources familiar with the matter said.

It’s unclear why the charge was expunged – but he passed a background check when he applied for the city government gig last year, according to sources and an email reviewed by The Post.

City officials have argued Rubio Bohorquez had permission to be in the US until October 2026, but was detained anyway during the routine appointment at a US Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Bethpage.

But internal ICE records indicate that Rubio Bohorquez had his Temporary Protected Status and work authorization terminated on Nov. 20, 2025, a person with knowledge of the case told the New York Times.

Rubio Bohorquez first reached the US in 2017 on a tourist visa – and later was granted TPS that allowed for work authorization, according to sources and documents reviewed by The Post.

He applied for an extension on Jan. 17, 2025 — before the Trump administration ended the 2023 program for migrants from the South American nation the following month, the documents show.

The Supreme Court determined in October that Trump could strip the deportation protections from 300,000 Venezuelans in the US.

The Department of Homeland Security‘s website shows Rubio Bohorquez was allowed to stay in the US until Oct. 2, 2026, since he applied before the protections were revoked.

Sources said he had work authorization when he applied for the City Council gig in January 2025, though it was revoked months later, according to the Times.

DHS did not return a request for comment for more information about Rubio Bohorquez’s TPS status Tuesday.

The department said in a statement Monday he arrived on a tourist visa in 2017 and was supposed to leave the country later that year. DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin cited the Venezuelan national’s past arrest for assault, labeling him a “criminal illegal alien.”

No prior criminal record turned up when the Council ran a background check on Rubio Bohorquez, according to sources connected to former Speaker Adrienne Adams, under whose tenure he was hired.

The vetting process was described as “robust” and done by lawyers in-house, with sources saying employees need to submit appropriate paperwork, including a social security number and federal work authorization documentation, to land a city government position.

“There’s no way around that — like the Council can’t just wink and nod and hire someone without proper immigration paperwork,” one source said.

A hearing was set for Friday, at which Rubio Bohorquez’s legal team will argue he should be released from detention.

“Without relief from this court, he faces the prospect of months, or even years, in immigration custody, and would suffer undue hardship,” his lawyer wrote in a petition filed Tuesday that states he is seeking asylum.

Council Speaker Julie Menin first revealed Rubio Bohorquez’s detainment during a Monday night press conference. She said in a follow-up statement Tuesday that the staffer was being held at a New York state facility.

“As part of his application to work for the Council, the staffer cleared the standard background check conducted for all applicants,” she said in a statement.

“The Council has been unable to contact the staffer but is working to get in touch with the staffer’s immigration counsel.”

A rally with a series of city and state lawmakers outside the Manhattan detention center called for his freedom and bashed immigration authorities Tuesday afternoon.

“This exactly proved that we have to stop talking about criminality,” said Council Member Sandy Nurse (D-Brooklyn) at the rally.

“This is not about criminality. This is not about law and order. This is about power. And specifically, this is a political project by the United States president to enact white power. It’s disgusting.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul also backed the staffer during her State of the State address Tuesday.

“Yesterday, they arrested an analyst in New York City Hall, an analyst with legal work authorization,” she said.

“Have you met an analyst lately? They’re really not threatening. They’re not the baddest of the bad. They’re just doing their jobs. Is that person really a threat? Come on.”

— Additional reporting by Joe Marino, Ben Kochman and Vaughn Golden