Southwest
Border czar Kamala Harris visits Houston weeks after Jocelyn Nungaray allegedly murdered by illegal immigrants
“Border czar” Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to Houston, Texas, choosing to attend a dinner for a convention for teachers rather than visit the grieving parents of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, who was raped and murdered, allegedly by two migrants.
Nungaray was found strangled to death June 17. Authorities identified the suspects as two Venezuelan nationals — Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 21, and Franklin Jose Peña Ramos, 26.
Authorities previously confirmed the pair illegally entered the U.S. earlier this year.
Harris’ visit to Houston came as the vice president began a whirlwind campaign tour after President Biden announced he would not seek re-election.
DEM WHO CRITICIZED VP HARRIS’ HANDLING OF SOUTHERN BORDER ENDORSES HER FOR PRESIDENT
Vice President Kamala Harris addresses the members of the American Federation of Teachers at George R. Brown Convention Center Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Houston. (Conley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Jocelyn Nungaray, 12, was found strangled to death in a Houston creek. (Fox Houston courtesy of the Nungaray family)
Harris began her trip by greeting local leaders to be briefed on the region’s recovery efforts from Hurricane Beryl and then attended the American Federation of Teachers’ (AFT) annual convention.
“And I thank you also for your support over the years and for being the first union to endorse me this week,” Harris said.
The American Federation of Teachers is the first labor union to endorse Harris for president since she announced her campaign. (Montinique Monroe/Getty Images)
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Harris’ address highlighted her campaign hot-button topics, which included key parts of the Democratic Party platform, such as eliminating voter ID to expand mail-in voting, banning assault rifles, protecting LGBTQ+ rights and restoring national access to abortion.
“In this moment across our nation, we witness a full-on attack on hard-won, hard-fought freedoms,” said Harris.
“In this moment, we are in a fight for our most fundamental freedoms. And to this room of leaders, I say bring it on. Bring it on. Bring it on.”
Jocelyn Nungaray’s mother, Alexis Nungaray, speaks after Pena Ramos’ court appearance June 24, 2024. (KRIV)
Harris’ visit notably did not include a visit to Nungaray’s grieving parents who, since her death, have pleaded for a “safer country” and called for heightened border security to prevent other families from suffering the same fate.
“We have to stop burying our kids,” Jocelyn’s mother, Alexis Nungaray, said tearfully on “Hannity.” “This isn’t right. We have to have more reinforcement when it comes to letting people in. This is not OK.”
Jocelyn’s grandfather, Kelvin Alvarenga, turned his attention directly to lawmakers.
“Think about all these little angels that shouldn’t have been taken away.”
“I would like the people that can make changes to our laws to just sit back and reflect,” Alvarenga said. “I don’t know if we can transmit the pain that we’re having through cameras, but please sit back and reflect and think of all these little angels that shouldn’t have been taken away, and they have for the reason that we’re not doing what we need to, screening these people.”
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign event at Westover High School in Fayetteville, N.C., July 18, 2024. (Allison Joyce/AFP via Getty Images)
“Screening these people” fell under Harris’ charge as “border czar” for the Biden administration.
“Border czar” is an informal title widely granted to Harris in 2021 when Biden appointed her to handle the “root causes” of illegal immigration.
In July 2021, she introduced a five-point general strategy to combat those “root causes” of illegal immigration. The plan did not include specific policies, but instead called for “diplomacy, foreign assistance, public diplomacy and sanctions” to “establish a fair, orderly and humane immigration system.”
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The document emphasized the “push” factors of migration, including natural disasters in Central America, poverty, hunger, and gang violence, each of which contributes to people leaving their homes in search of a better life in America.
“In Central America, the root causes of migration run deep — and migration from the region has a direct impact on the United States,” Harris said at the time. “For that reason, our nation must consistently engage with the region to address the hardships that cause people to leave Central America and come to our border.”
WATCH:
The Biden administration has pushed back against categorizing Harris as the “border czar,” saying the vice president was never formally given that title.
BLUE CITY COPS SAY KAMALA HARRIS ‘HELPED’ KILLERS AND RAPISTS, WARN OF ‘DISASTER’ IF SHE BECOMES PRESIDENT
“[Border apprehensions] are down by 55%. Not because of Republicans and what they did. It’s because of what this president and this vice president did,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told Fox News’ Peter Doocy when pressed on Harris’ title.
“We are going to debunk the false characterization of the vice president. She was not a border czar. And it’s not just us. Independent fact-checkers have said the same thing — that that did not exist, and that is not true.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee July 17, 2024. (Reuters/Callaghan O’hare)
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott torched Harris’ visit to Houston, saying she “couldn’t trouble herself” to visit the southern border.
“Kamala Harris flew to Houston for a political rally, but couldn’t trouble herself to go a few hundred miles more & see the damage she caused to our border,” Abbott wrote in a post on X.
“She refused to mention Jocelyn Nungaray who was recently killed by illegal immigrants in Houston.”
Joselyn Jhoana Toaquiza had just turned 21 years old when she was killed. (GoFundMe)
Nungaray is among victims killed in migrant-related crime during the Biden administration.
HARRIS’ BACKING OF BAIL FUND DURING GEORGE FLOYD PROTESTS DAMPENS TRUMP ‘PROSECUTOR’ CAMPAIGN PITCH
In July, Jhon Moises Chacaguasay-Ilbis, a 21-year-old illegal immigrant from Ecuador, allegedly murdered Joselyn Jhoana Toaquiza at an Airbnb property in Syracuse, New York.
The gruesome crime was reportedly carried out on the victim’s 21st birthday.
Laken Riley poses for a photo posted to Facebook. Riley, a nursing student at the University of Georgia, was found dead near a lake on campus Feb. 22, 2024. (Allyson Phillips/Facebook)
In February, 22-year-old Laken Riley was murdered when taking a run along dirt trails on the University of Georgia campus in Athens.
Jose Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegal migrant from Venezuela, is facing 10 counts following the death of Riley. The 26-year-old recently pleaded not guilty in the death of a college student.
Victor Martinez Hernandez, 23, was arrested in the murder of Rachel Morin.
In August 2023, Maryland mother Rachel Morin was allegedly sexually assaulted and murdered by Victor Antonio Martinez Hernandez, a 23-year-old illegal El Salvadorian migrant.
TAKE IT FROM ME, REPUBLICANS: KAMALA HARRIS IS A STRONG CANDIDATE: DONT UNDERESTIMATE HER
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed to Fox News Digital that Hernandez had attempted to enter the country illegally four times after being accused of a similar murder in his native El Salvador.
Hundreds of migrants attempt to cross the Mexico-U.S. border in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, March 29, 2024. (David Peinado/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The ongoing border crisis is a top issue for voters ahead of the November election. The Biden administration has pushed back against Republican criticism, saying there has been a 50% drop in illegal immigrant crossings since Biden announced an executive order in June limiting crossings into the U.S.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Harris campaign and the White House for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw, Anders Hagstrom and Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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Los Angeles, Ca
About 20 detained after armed suspect call sparks LAPD response in Koreatown
About 20 people were detained Saturday during a large police response in Los Angeles’ Koreatown after authorities received reports of an armed man threatening people, officials said. Officers responded to the 3400 block of West 8th Street near Kingsley Drive on reports of an assault with a deadly weapon, according to the Los Angeles Police […]
Los Angeles, Ca
Man found guilty of sex trafficking victim along L.A.’s Figueroa Corridor
A former Riverside County man was found guilty of sex trafficking a female victim and forcing her to engage in commercial sex acts along L.A.’s notorious Figueroa Corridor.
Elias Abdul Shabazz, 34, formerly of Perris, was found guilty by a jury following a five-day trial, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Prosecutors said Shabazz had led the victim to believe they were in a romantic relationship before he turned physically and sexually violent. He began demanding that the victim engage in commercial sex acts from May to October of 2021, court documents said.
He carried a handgun with him and, on occasion, was accused of using it to pistol-whip the victim. He also fired the gun at her feet while threatening to kill her, prosecutors said.
At trial, the victim said Shabazz demanded that she meet a daily quota of commercial sex proceeds and that she was terrified of the consequences of not meeting that quota.
She testified that Shabazz compelled her to work in the notorious Figueroa Corridor in South L.A., a dangerous area known for human trafficking and prostitution.
Shabazz had confiscated her identification card, Social Security card and birth certificate. He constantly monitored her cell phone to stop her from communicating with any friends or family.
“He also introduced her to addictive narcotics and controlled every aspect of her life, including when she ate, slept and showered,” prosecutors said.
In May 2025, Shabazz was arrested and has remained in federal custody. His last known address at the time was in Washington, D.C.
On June 26, 2026, Shabazz was found guilty of one count of coercing or enticing interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 6, where he faces 15 years to life in prison.
“Sex trafficking matters rank among the most tragic cases our office prosecutes,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. “This defendant will now face many years in a federal prison cell for his sick, disgusting, and disturbing behavior.”
“Elias Shabazz preyed on a vulnerable victim using physical and sexual violence and cruel psychological coercion to compel commercial sex acts for his own profit,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “There is no place for this type of conduct in civilized society. We deeply respect the victim’s courage to face her trafficker in court. The Criminal Division will continue to bring these cases and try them.”
Anyone with information about human trafficking can report tips to the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888
Los Angeles, Ca
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