A man identified as an MS-13 gang member, who is wanted for murder in El Salvador and convicted in an execution-style killing, has been released from federal custody in California. U.S. District Judge Jinsook Ohta ordered the release of David Antonio Aviles Perez, 35, after finding that immigration officials had detained him for five months without providing a bond hearing or an individualized assessment of his danger to the public or flight risk.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin criticized the ruling, stating that the judge put American lives at risk. "This radical activist judge has put American lives at risk by releasing a wanted murderer," Mullin said in a statement. "This is now the SECOND time this dangerous illegal has been released back onto the streets in California. Because sanctuary politicians want to play politics from the bench, innocent Americans are in danger."
Aviles Perez was convicted in December 2025 for aggravated murder in El Salvador, where prosecutors note he is known as "the witch" and a notorious MS-13 gang member. Prosecutors stated that Aviles Perez and another gang member chased a victim in a mountainous area before other gang members forced the victim to stop and kneel. Aviles Perez and an accomplice then allegedly shot the victim in the chest, back, and face before fleeing. Both defendants were tried and convicted while outside the country.
According to DHS, Aviles Perez entered the U.S. at an unknown date and location. He was arrested in Monterey, California, in 2023, for allegedly swinging a machete at a homeless man. He was charged and convicted following this incident but was later released from custody. DHS attributed this release to California's sanctuary policies, which limit cooperation between local authorities and federal immigration officials.
ICE agents arrested Aviles Perez again in San Diego on March 26 and took him into custody pending removal to El Salvador. He was held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center until Ohta ordered his immediate release on August 26. Aviles Perez had filed a petition challenging his detention and seeking his release, arguing that his Fifth Amendment due process rights were violated by the prolonged detention without an individualized hearing.
Judge Ohta ruled that federal officials had not provided Aviles Perez with adequate due process and had not demonstrated that a hearing would impose an undue burden on the government. The ruling focused on the procedural steps taken by immigration officials rather than the guilt or danger posed by Aviles Perez. Ohta ordered his release and stipulated that ICE could not detain him again unless an immigration judge first holds a bond hearing and determines renewed detention is warranted.
Aviles Perez was subsequently released from federal custody. The DHS has vowed that the ruling will not impede the administration's immigration enforcement efforts. "DHS and ICE will not be deterred by these partisan games," Mullin stated. "If California’s leaders won’t protect Americans, DHS will."
Judge Ohta was appointed to the San Diego County Superior Court in December 2020 by California Governor Gavin Newsom and was later nominated by President Joe Biden to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California in September 2021. She was confirmed by the Senate in December 2021.