Des Moines Superintendent Arrested by ICE

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Ian Andre Roberts, superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, saying he was in the country without work authorization and subject to a final removal order issued in 2024. ICE says agents initiated a traffic stop while Roberts was driving a school-issued vehicle, that he sped away and abandoned the vehicle in nearby woods, and that Iowa State Patrol helped locate and take him into custody. Officers reported finding a loaded handgun, $3,000 in cash and a fixed-blade knife in his possession; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is reviewing the firearm because undocumented immigrants may not legally possess guns. ICE said Roberts has a prior weapons charge from February 2020; district leaders and union representatives said they were shocked, noting Roberts completed an I-9 and a third‑party background check and that they had no prior knowledge of a removal order. Roberts, a Guyana native and former Olympian who became Des Moines superintendent in 2023 after leadership roles in multiple states, is being held in immigration detention as legal and investigative processes proceed.