LOS ANGELES — Federal immigration agents detained renowned Mexican boxer Julio César Chávez Jr. on Wednesday outside his home in the Studio City neighborhood of Los Angeles.
The boxer was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in connection with "an active arrest warrant in Mexico," the Department of Homeland Security said in a news release Thursday.
DHS alleges that the 39-year-old former WBC middleweight world champion is involved "in organized crime and trafficking firearms, ammunition, and explosives."
The agency also said it believes Chávez is an affiliate of the Sinaloa Cartel, which President Donald Trump designated as foreign terrorist organization.
Chávez’s attorney, Michael A. Goldstein, called the cartel allegations “outrageous and simply another headline to terrorize the community.”
According to Goldstein, more than 25 federal agents surrounded Chávez’s home. “They blocked off his street and took him into custody without informing his family,” he said in a statement.
DHS said Chávez is being processed "for expedited removal from the United States."
Chávez has an ongoing weapons case in Los Angeles County. Goldstein said a court granted Chávez "mental health diversion" for potential dismissal of those charges.
The Los Angeles Police Department arrested Chávez on firearm charges in 2023 following a mental health breakdown, Goldstein said.
Goldstein added that Chávez has complied with all of the court’s requirements related to the mental health diversion, which provided Chávez an opportunity to seek much-needed counseling.
Chávez claimed the middleweight title in June 2011 and defended the title three times. He was defeated Saturday at Honda Center in Anaheim, California, by influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul in a 10-round cruiserweight fight.
Chávez, the son of a former multidivision boxing champion, was born in the state of Sinaloa, Mexico. He made his debut as a professional boxer as a teenager in 2002.
The detention comes after weeks of federal immigration enforcement operations in the Los Angeles area after Trump made the issue a central part of his campaign.
The DHS said Chávez entered the country in August 2023 with a B2 tourist visa that was valid until 2024. He filed an application to become a permanent lawful resident last year based on his marriage to a U.S. citizen, whom the department also accused of having connections to the Sinaloa Cartel “through a prior relationship with the now-deceased son of the infamous cartel leader Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman.”
In December, Citizenship and Immigration Services made a referral to ICE that Chávez is an “egregious public safety threat,” DHS said. In January, he was allowed to re-enter the country at the San Ysidro Port of Entry near San Diego.
He is accused of multiple “fraudulent statements” on the application for lawful permanent residence, according to the DHS, which deemed him removable from the United States on June 27.
“This Sinaloa Cartel affiliate with an active arrest warrant for trafficking guns, ammunition, and explosives was arrested by ICE. It is shocking the previous administration flagged this criminal illegal alien as a public safety threat, but chose to not prioritize his removal and let him leave and come back into our country,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “Under President Trump, no one is above the law — including world-famous athletes. Our message to any cartel affiliates in the U.S. is clear: We will find you and you will face consequences. The days of unchecked cartel violence are over.”
