What to Know
- A 31-year-old ICE detainee with a record escaped custody Tuesday at JFK, hopped into a taxi and fled the airport, Port Authority says
- He was captured in Chicago Friday after a three-day manhunt, sources say
- ICE says he has prior criminal convictions for multiple weapons and firearms offenses
A Senegalese man has been convicted of escaping from Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
A jury in federal court in Brooklyn deliberated for about two hours on Friday before finding Mohamadou Lamine Mbacke guilty of the misdemeanor.
Prosecutors had showed jurors a security videotape of Mbacke dashing through the airport last year after he ducked away from agents preparing to deport him to Senegal for a previous gun offense. Authorities tracked him down three days later in Chicago.
Defense attorney Jan Rostal accused federal authorities of falsely labeling her client as a threat to public safety. After the verdict, she said the case opened up questions about how the government handles deportations.
The conviction carries a sentence of up to one year behind bars.
