ICE arrested Dinh Quy Nguyen in Houston on May 5, 2026. Nguyen was convicted in 1989 of attempted capital murder of a police officer and burglary and has a final removal order dating to 1997. He avoided deportation for years after Vietnam declined repatriation in 2011 because of an earlier U.S.-Vietnam policy protecting arrivals before July 12, 1995. DHS says the arrest reflects renewed enforcement to remove violent offenders who previously escaped deportation.
ICE Arrests Vietnamese National Convicted of Attempted Murder of Police Officer After Years Avoiding Deportation
On March 17, 2011, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice transferred Nguyen into ICE custody.(Getty Images)
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested Dinh Quy Nguyen in Houston, Texas, on May 5, 2026. Nguyen was previously convicted for the attempted capital murder of a police officer and for burglary, and he has a long history in the U.S. that dates back to the 1970s.
Case Background and Timeline
Nguyen first entered the United States through Honolulu, Hawaii, on Dec. 15, 1977. An immigration judge issued a final order of removal on Dec. 30, 1997, which the Board of Immigration Appeals affirmed on May 26, 1998. Nguyen was convicted on June 28, 1989, of attempted capital murder of a police officer and burglary.
On March 17, 2011, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice transferred Nguyen into ICE custody. He was released on June 22, 2011, when Vietnamese authorities declined to accept his repatriation. At the time, a bilateral arrangement prevented U.S. authorities from removing Vietnamese nationals who arrived before July 12, 1995, a category that includes Nguyen.
ICE agents participate in an enforcement operation.
Renewed Enforcement and Detention
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials say the arrest reflects a renewed enforcement effort to remove foreign nationals with serious criminal convictions who previously avoided deportation because of diplomatic or procedural barriers. Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a written statement released during Police Week that ICE law enforcement removed a convicted offender "so he cannot victimize anymore Americans."
"As we observe Police Week, the men and women of ICE law enforcement are removing this illegal alien convicted of attempted murder of a police officer from our communities, so he cannot victimize anymore Americans," the statement read.
Federal officials framed the arrest as consistent with the priorities of the current administration and Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin to support ICE officers who arrest dangerous criminals. Nguyen is currently detained at the Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe, Texas, pending removal proceedings and eventual repatriation to Vietnam.
Implications
Legal and diplomatic technicalities have in some cases long complicated removal of foreign nationals with final orders of removal. DHS officials say recent policy changes aim to dismantle such barriers to ensure individuals convicted of violent crimes cannot remain in the United States indefinitely because their home countries decline repatriation.
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