WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released new information on criminal illegal alien Ian Andre Roberts, who was installed by an incompetent all-female Democrat school board as Des Moines’ school district superintendent, and other investigators are revealing more sordid details on the criminal’s conduct.
When U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials approached Roberts, he identified himself then sped off, abandoned his vehicle, and hid in a brushy area about 200 meters away, where ICE officers located him with help from Iowa State Patrol officers. At the time of arrest, a loaded handgun, hunting knife and $3,000 cash were found in his vehicle. On Oct. 2, he was charged with being an illegal alien in possession of firearms.
Roberts’ rap sheet and immigration history reveal a long record of criminal conduct in the United States. He should never have been serving in a role overseeing children in Iowa’s largest school district.
“Ian Andre Roberts (pictured at top), a criminal illegal alien with multiple weapons charges and a drug trafficking charge, should have never been able to work around children,” said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “When ICE officers arrested this Superintendent, he was in possession of an illegal handgun, a hunting knife, and nearly $3,000 in cash. This criminal illegal alien is now in U.S. Marshals custody and facing charges for being an illegal alien in possession of a firearms. Under Secretary Noem, ICE will continue to arrest the worst of the worst and put the safety of America’s children FIRST.”
His criminal record includes the following:
- July 3, 1996: Charges for criminal possession of narcotics with intent to sell, criminal possession of narcotics, criminal possession of a forgery instrument and possession of a forged instrument in New York.
- Nov. 13, 1998: A charge for third-degree unauthorized use of a vehicle in Queens, New York, which was dismissed July 6, 1999.
- Nov. 1, 2012: A conviction for reckless driving, unsafe operation and speeding in Maryland.
- Feb. 3, 2020: Charges for second-degree criminal possession of a weapon (having a loaded firearm outside his home or business); third-degree criminal possession of a weapon (an ammunition feeding device); and fourth-degree weapon charges. A document from Feb. 4, 2020, indicates that the second-degree criminal possession charge was inchoate.
- Jan. 20, 2022: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania convicted Roberts of unlawful possession of a loaded firearm.
- Sept. 26, 2025: Roberts was arrested with a Glock 9mm pistol and a fixed-blade hunting knife in his possession. He also had $3,000 in cash.
- Oct. 2, 2025: Roberts criminally charged with being an illegal alien in possession of firearms.
Roberts’ immigration history includes two visas, four Green Card applications and subsequent denials, and several trips: -
June 1, 1994: Roberts entered the United States at John F. Kennedy International Airport on a B-2 nonimmigrant visa; he was classified as a visitor for pleasure. He departed the U.S. on an unknown date but returned before his 1996 arrest for narcotics possession.
- March 8, 1999: He entered the U.S. through California’s San Francisco International Airport as an F-1 student visa holder. The visa was set to expire March 7, 2004. He departed the U.S. on an unknown date.
- June 28, 1999: Roberts reentered the U.S. through San Francisco on the same F-1 student visa. He departed the U.S. on an unknown date.
- Aug. 30, 1999: He again reentered the U.S. at JFK International Airport on the same student visa.
- Feb. 9, 2000: Roberts filed an application for employment authorization, which U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services approved April 5, 2000, with an expiration date of April 1, 2001.
- Sept. 4, 2000: He left the U.S. from JFK International Airport.
- Sept. 30, 2000: Roberts entered the U.S. again at JFK International Airport on the same F-1 student visa.
- May 21, 2001: He filed a green card application with USCIS, which the agency rejected Jan. 3, 2003.
- May 15, 2018: Roberts filed another green card application with USCIS, which the agency again rejected on May 30 that year.
- June 4, 2018: Roberts filed another green card application, which USCIS rejected for the third time June 20 that year.
- July 15, 2018: He filed for employment authorization documents, which USCIS granted on Dec. 18 that year, giving the documents an expiration date of Dec. 18, 2019.
- July 16, 2018: Roberts filed, for the fourth time, a green card application. USCIS denied it Jan. 24, 2020.
- Nov. 18, 2019: He filed another application for employment authorization documents, which USCIS approved Dec. 3 of that year and issued an expiration date of Dec. 18, 2020.
- Feb. 11, 2020: Roberts updated his address with USCIS.
Oct. 2, 2020: USCIS issued him a notice to appear before an immigration judge. - May 22, 2024: An immigration judge in Dallas, Texas, ordered Roberts removed in absentia.
- April 24, 2025: An immigration judge in Dallas denied Roberts’ motion to reopen his case.
- Sept. 26, 2025: ICE officials arrested Roberts in Des Moines, Iowa.
Roberts is now in U.S. Marshals custody and will be prosecuted for his recent crimes.
Even as DHS reveals more of Roberts’ criminal conduct as they work to deport him, other investigators are revealing that Roberts had woven a tapestry of relationships with female enablers. Some of them had been posting quotes on their online pages from his book, titled “Radical Empathy” … the same phrase Des Moines School Board Chair Jackie Norris (and Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate) and other protesters used as they begged for his release or understanding about his arrest.
According to investigator Laura Powell (@LauraPowellEsq), Roberts had been telling tall tales about himself to anyone that would listen. A few of her findings:
I glossed over the details of Ian Robert’s law enforcement experience in Guyana when I first posted about his history, but it’s one of the most startling parts of his story.
In older bios, Roberts claimed to be both a military officer and a police detective. Later, he dropped these credentials, which seemed odd for someone so boastful. They resurfaced in 2022 after reports that he had violated Pennsylvania gun laws. In response, Roberts issued a statement describing himself as “a trained Commissioned Military Officer with a wealth of experience in firearms training and safety.”
A self-published book last year provided more details. Roberts wrote that, after graduating from officer candidate school in Guyana at age 22, he was assigned to the “Quick Reaction Group,” also known as “Black Clothes” or—chillingly—“The Death Squad.”
In the book, Roberts claimed he was trained to use any means necessary, including killing, to protect the government’s interests. He described being conditioned to put aside empathy and act as a “trained assassin,” though he tried to soften the picture by saying he disciplined subordinates when there was evidence of extrajudicial killings.
Maybe he was exaggerating to sound tough. He’s fabricated so much else about his background that it wouldn’t be surprising if this too was a lie. And I do have doubts about his claim that he “served on the security detail for Queen Elizabeth Il” when she visited Guyana in 1994. But why admit to something as horrifying as serving in a “Death Squad” if it weren’t true?
There is some corroboration for his law enforcement experience. The AP interviewed a retired Guyanese police commissioner who recalled Roberts in the 1990s, before he emigrated. And at yesterday’s press conference, his attorney—who by all accounts is a respected figure—confirmed that Roberts had graduated from military school and participated in raids targeting violent criminals as a police officer.
As background, these Guyanese death squads emerged after a far-left party took power in 1992—the same year Roberts graduated from officer candidate school. The unit he said he belonged to was tasked with combating violent crime at a time that a serious crime waves was emerging in his county. These groups quickly became notorious, with human rights groups widely accusing them of assassinating alleged criminals instead of bringing them to court.
Perhaps Roberts’s claim that he resisted participating in extrajudicial killings contains a grain of truth. But one thing that seems clear is that he didn’t have the integrity to build a new life in America without breaking the law and deceiving people.
She also highlighted that the Des Moines Public Schools offer DEI policies that “openly has race-based hiring quotas, and the superintendent’s (formerly Roberts, until his arrest) performance is tied to meeting certain numbers of non-white staffing:
Des Moines Public Schools openly has race-based hiring quotas, and the superintendent’s performance is tied to meeting certain numbers of non-white staffing.
(@CivilRights has already launched an investigation into the district.) pic.twitter.com/oMjWTFpKzp
— Laura Powell (@LauraPowellEsq) October 5, 2025