The superintendent of Des Moines Public Faculties — Iowa’s largest faculty district – was detained Friday morning by immigration brokers, in line with the Division of Homeland Safety, which mentioned the educator was within the nation illegally and had current weapon possession fees.
Superintendent Ian Roberts – an educator with many years of expertise who beforehand competed as an Olympic athlete for Guyana – was arrested as a part of a “focused enforcement operation” and fled after US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers approached him, in line with statements from DHS and the Iowa Division of Public Security.
DHS mentioned he was “in possession of a loaded handgun, $3,000 in money and a set blade searching knife” on the time of his arrest. It’s a violation of federal regulation to personal a firearm and ammunition if a person doesn’t have authorized standing within the US.
CNN is working to determine Roberts’ lawyer.
The varsity district and DHS offered starkly divergent portraits of Roberts. DHS described him as a “felony alien” and recommended he was a public security risk. However at a information convention after his arrest, board president of Des Moines Public Faculties Jackie Norris mentioned the superintendent was “an integral a part of our college group” who “has proven up in methods large and small” for college kids and workers. And Roberts disclosed his weapon cost, associated to a searching rifle, when he was employed, a district spokesperson advised CNN.
The arrest spurred a protest exterior the federal courthouse in Des Moines. “Schooling, not deportation / Free Dr. Roberts,” learn one signal carried by a demonstrator, in line with footage from CNN affiliate KCCI. Native training and immigration advocacy teams have rallied behind the superintendent.
Neighborhood members collect to sentence Roberts’ arrest throughout a protest on the Federal Constructing on Friday,. – Lily Smith/The Register/USA At present Netowrk/Imagn Photographs
The Iowa Board of Academic Examiners issued Roberts a license to function superintendent within the state in July 2023, in line with Norris.
“There’s new info that has been made public that we didn’t know, and we now have not been capable of confirm,” Norris mentioned.
Roberts oversaw over 30,000 college students within the Des Moines public faculty system, in line with the district’s web site, and had beforehand labored at public colleges throughout the nation.
One other administrator, Matt Smith, has taken the function of interim superintendent within the meantime, in line with a message posted on social media by the district earlier.
“Our precedence is to offer a secure, safe and excellent training for all college students and to assist our college students, households, and workers,” the assertion learn.
Roberts’ arrest comes amid the Trump administration’s continued crackdown on immigration, which has seen raids on workplaces and arrests of group pillars together with a firefighter, a journalist and a pastor.
Superintendent was given last order of removing in 2024, DHS says
Roberts entered the US on a pupil visa in 1999 and was given a last order of removing by an immigration decide in Could 2024, in line with the DHS assertion. He had current weapon fees from 2020, the company added.
Des Moines Public Faculties mentioned it was unaware of the order of removing however Roberts did inform the varsity board of a firearms offense associated to a searching rifle throughout his hiring course of. The district mentioned in an announcement Roberts “offered ample context and clarification of the state of affairs to maneuver ahead within the hiring course of.”
Roberts speaks through the Standing Up For Public Schooling Rally at Goodrell Center College in Des Moines on Could 1. – Lily Smith/The Register/USA At present Community/Reuters
Public data present Roberts pleaded responsible to a weapon cost in Pennsylvania in 2022. CNN has been unable to confirm whether or not Roberts has a separate cost from 2020.
The district additionally mentioned Roberts submitted an employment eligibility verification kind and an I-9 as a part of the hiring course of.
“The district has not been formally notified by ICE about this matter, nor have we been capable of speak with Dr. Roberts since his detention,” district spokesperson Phil Roeder mentioned.
ICE Enforcement and Elimination Operations St. Paul Discipline Workplace Director Sam Olson mentioned in an announcement Robertson’s arrest needs to be a “wake-up name for our communities to the nice work that our officers are doing day-after-day to take away public security threats.”
ICE’s on-line detainee locator system reveals Roberts was born in Guyana and is being held at a county jail in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
Neighborhood rallies behind longtime educator
Roberts was named Des Moines Public Faculties superintendent in 2023, in line with the district’s web site. He was “born to immigrant mother and father from Guyana, and spent most of his childhood in Brooklyn, NY,” the web site reads.
Earlier than turning into an educator, the superintendent was an Olympic athlete and competed in monitor and subject on the 2000 Olympic Video games in Sydney, Australia.
Roberts’ lengthy instructional profession has included positions in New York Metropolis; Baltimore; Washington, DC; St. Louis; Oakland, California; and Erie, Pennsylvania, in line with his LinkedIn profile.
Among the many crowd protesting Roberts’ arrest Friday was district instructor Mary Pat LaMair, who mentioned she was excited to see the show of assist.
“I simply suppose it’s actually vital that we maintain each other, and we appear to be at a spot the place that’s not what’s occurring,” LaMair advised CNN affiliate KCCI. She added, “It’s vital for folks to know that most of the people, I believe, isn’t okay with what’s occurring.”
Tons of attend a group service in assist of Roberts at Corinthian Baptist Church in Des Moines, Sept. 26, 2025. – Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Register/USA At present Community/Imagn Photographs
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, was made conscious of the incident and is in touch with native and federal authorities, in line with KCCI.
The Iowa State Schooling Affiliation and Des Moines Schooling Affiliation mentioned they have been “shocked” by Roberts’ detention and described the administrator as a “great advocate” in an announcement, reported KCCI.
“His management and compassion for all college students, no matter background, identification, or household origin, are a beacon of sunshine in one of many state’s most numerous faculty districts,” reads the assertion, in line with KCCI. “It’s a darkish and unsettling time in our nation. This incident has created great concern for DMPS college students, households, and workers.”
The Administrators Council — a nonprofit group serving Des Moines’ Black group — recognized Roberts as a board member and provided him their “full assist” in a publish on Fb.
Roberts “has been a trusted companion, a devoted advocate for fairness, and an unwavering supporter of households and youth in Polk County,” reads the publish. “His contributions to each The Administrators Council and the broader group are immeasurable, and we stand with him throughout this unsure second.”
In a video assertion posted on their Fb web page, organizers from the Iowa Motion for Migrant Justice mentioned information of the superintendent’s detention was surprising and scary for immigrant communities.
“We all know prematurely that our households proper now are afraid that in the event that they go to select up their youngsters, in the event that they ship them to highschool, if immigrant brokers are going to go take their youngsters out of college,” Elizabeth Balcarcel mentioned within the video assertion. “There are numerous questions, many doubts.”
The Des Moines College Board has scheduled a particular closed-session assembly on Saturday to debate the arrest and Roberts’ standing with the district.
This story has been up to date with further info.
CNN’s Catherine Shoichet contributed to this report.
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