A hearing is set for Tuesday over the arrest of a man on immigration charges who was involved in a number of community projects in Ventura County.
Luis Lopez-Diaz is a business owner, and board member for the Oxnard-based Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project. The organization provides community services for thousands of Mixtecs who have moved to Ventura County.
He was arrested August 29th at an Oxnard apartment complex. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Officers had gone to the complex looking for a fugitive wanted on criminal charges. ICE officials say while they didn’t find the wanted man, the discovered Lopez-Diaz.
They say a background check showed Lopez-Diaz didn’t have legal status in the U.S., and had been deported five previous times. Lopez-Diaz is known in the community as Raul Gomez.
Representatives of some immigrants groups say he is a hard working man involved in a number of projects to help undocumented residents.
