In a surprising turn of events, authorities have sensationally dropped the traffic charges that landed a 19-year-old college student in ICE custody — after cops admitted they mistakenly stopped the wrong car.
Ximena Arias Cristobal, a Mexican-born student who has lived in the United States since she was four, was taken into ICE custody following a May 5 traffic stop in Dalton, Georgia, where she lives with her family.
She was cited for making an improper turn and driving without a license, then booked into the Whitfield County Jail, a move that triggered her transfer to ICE custody.
The Dalton Police Department and the city prosecutor, however, revealed they had reviewed dashcam footage from the stop and determined the officer had made a mistake.
The vehicle that committed the traffic infraction was similar in appearance to the truck Arias Cristobal was driving, they said.
Despite the charges being dropped, Arias Cristobal remains in ICE custody and is now facing deportation. She is being held at the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, according to ICE’s online detainee tracking system.
Her father, Jose Francisco Arias Tovar, is also detained at the same facility. He was arrested by ICE last month following a separate traffic stop in Tunnel Hill, the family said.
Ximena Arias Cristobal has lived in Georgia since she was four. But due to local law enforcement’s strict coordination with ICE, she was swiftly transferred to Stewart after the May 5 traffic stop, according to ABC 9.
In a turn of events, authorities in Dalton, Georgia, have sensationally dropped the traffic charges that landed a 19-year-old college student Ximena Arias Cristobal in ICE custody — after cops admitted they mistakenly stopped the wrong car
Chained by her wrists and ankles, she was taken into the facility where she is set to stay detained for over a month until she appears before a judge. Online records show that she was arrested for driving without a valid license and failure to obey traffic control devices
A GoFundMe for the teenager said that she came into the country in 2010 at the age of four and had not qualified for the DACA program which ended a year earlier (Pictured: Arias and her father, Jose Francisco Arias Tovar)
The 19-year-old student was shackled at the wrists and ankles as she was brought into the facility, where she is expected to remain for over a month before appearing before a judge.
After being pulled over, Arias Cristobal told the officer she had an international driver’s license — but did not have it with her at the time.
Online jail records show she was initially arrested for driving without a valid license and for failing to obey traffic control devices — both of which have now been dismissed.
Arias Cristobal had previously attempted to apply for DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) after arriving in the U.S. in 2010, but her mother said the program had ended a year before they crossed the border.
DACA allowed undocumented children brought to the U.S. to apply for deportation deferral every two years. The program has been closed to new applicants for several years.
During her booking at the jail, Arias Cristobal was asked about her immigration status — a routine part of intake at Whitfield County that often leads to ICE referrals.
In a twist of fate, Arias Cristobal is being held in the same facility as her father, Jose Francisco Arias Tovar, who was detained in Tunnel Hill two weeks earlier for speeding.
Attorney Terry Olsen warned the teen’s mother may be next. ‘It’s likely Arias Cristobal’s mother will be ‘arrested or detained within a month or so,” he said.
Her mother, translated through Arias-Cristobal’s younger sister, further told the outlet: ‘My dad has his own company, and they called a lawyer to see if they could get a job permit or a visa, and they said that they hadn’t hit that status to get one yet’ (Pictured: Arias and her father, Jose Francisco Arias Tovar)
Jones said Arias-Cristobal had babysat her children for years, and added: ‘We adore her.’ She told the outlet that the teenager is ‘the most precious human’ and believed her international license allowed her to drive legally
Attorney Terry Olsen said that is is likely Arias-Cristobal’s mother will be ‘arrested or detained within a month or so,’ and that her daughters would be removed with her to keep the family together
Jones said Arias Cristobal had babysat her children for years and added, ‘We adore her.’ She also told the outlet the teen is ‘the most precious human’ and believed her international license allowed her to drive legally.
Arias Cristobal’s younger sister spoke emotionally about the family’s journey: ‘They came in with big dreams because they wanted a big future for my older sister. And, you know, my sister goes to college, and she was an honor student since middle school.’
‘And she runs. She loves to run. It’s her passion, and the only reason they came is to follow my sister’s dreams,’ her sister added.
Their mother, speaking through the younger daughter, said: ‘My dad has his own company, and they called a lawyer to see if they could get a job permit or a visa, and they said that they hadn’t hit that status to get one yet.’
Georgia State Representative Kacey Carpenter also weighed in, writing a letter on the teen’s behalf: ‘The reality is, the conversation has always been that we need to get hard criminals out of the country.
‘Unfortunately, the people that aren’t hard criminal are getting caught up in the wash. It seems like we are much better at catching people that [are] committing misdemeanors than people that are actually a danger to society.’
