Andry José Hernandez did not come to the U.S. to start trouble. He came because being openly gay in Venezuela nearly got him killed. A former TV makeup artist, Hernandez fled persecution and applied for asylum after entering through the legal CBP One process in San Diego. He passed his “credible fear” interview and explained his tattoos—two small crowns labeled “Mom” and “Dad”—as tributes to his hometown’s Three Kings Day celebration.
ICE saw something else: gang affiliation.
That interpretation came courtesy of Charles Cross Jr., a former Milwaukee cop who once drunkenly crashed a car into a family’s home and threatened suicide with his service revolver. Cross, who also had a history of inflated overtime claims and domestic violence, was added to the Milwaukee County Brady list—a public warning label for law enforcement officers with credibility issues. According to a recent USA TODAY investigation, he later found work with CoreCivic, a private prison contractor doing business with ICE.
Cross, now operating under the title “Investigator,” joined another CoreCivic contractor, Arturo Torres, in screening Hernandez at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. Based on a single form that scored Hernandez a “5” solely because of his tattoos, they marked him a gang suspect tied to the Venezuelan group Tren de Aragua. No witnesses. No corroboration. No due process. Just ink, bias, and vibes.
That “5” sealed his fate. Hernandez was first transferred to a detention center in Texas, and then—just weeks later—shipped off to El Salvador’s CECOT, a mega prison where inmates are paraded around shirtless in shackles for the camera and rarely seen again.
His lawyers haven’t heard from him since. Experts and advocates are livid.
“It would be highly problematic if that determination was being made, in fact, by a private prison employee,” said Greg Chen of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. “People are being rendered to a torture prison on the basis of these flimsy and inaccurate determinations,” said Heidi Altman of the National Immigration Law Center. “Using private prison contractors to make those determinations is just another level of recklessness.”
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Even DHS and FBI intelligence memos—reviewed by USA TODAY—warn that tattoos like Hernandez’s are not reliable indicators of gang ties. “Chicago Bulls attire, clocks, and rose tattoos are typically related to Venezuelan culture,” one federal bulletin reads. But that didn’t stop ICE from giving Cross and Torres the power to exile someone anyway.
And the policy backdrop? Former President Donald Trump himself praised the idea of outsourcing incarceration to El Salvador.
“I love it,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “If [President Bukele] would take them, I’d be honored to give them… If they can house these horrible criminals for a lot less money than it costs us, I’m all for it.”
But Hernandez isn’t a criminal. He’s a gay man fleeing oppression. And instead of protection, he got profiling—and prison.
This is not just a one-off injustice. It’s part of a larger, chilling trend. Under Trump-era changes and aggressive ICE enforcement, being queer, Latin American, tattooed, and scared is enough to get you flagged, detained, and vanished. No judge. No trial. Just a rubber stamp from two men in a privately run facility.
Andry José Hernandez disappeared into the system because someone looked at his wrists and saw a gang, not his parents. That’s not law enforcement—it’s erasure.
Call it what it is: persecution rebranded. If you care about queer rights, immigrant rights, or basic human dignity, speak out. Demand transparency. Support organizations like the National Immigration Law Center, RAICES, and Immigration Equality.
And don’t let anyone tell you this is just how things work now.
Source: USA Today
What is happening is rediculous. I also have a tattoo (tribal) and I can honestly say I was anxious about going through Immigration in Miami after a trip to St. Marteen.
The (?) president is a horrific excuse for being a world leader. Let these innocent guys return to their country. tRump could use a good makeup artist.
Dear lord.. this is the man in the white house every one wanted.. he’s gone totally crazy profiling innocent men. I can not believe this poor makeup artist was pin pointed. How do you justify it???
I’m angry that we’re just watching this happen and doing nothing about it..