ICE removes Ethiopian who committed female genital mutilation

ATLANTA – A citizen and national of Ethiopia was removed Monday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) to his native country after serving 10 years in prison.

Khalid Adem, 41, a native and citizen of Ethiopia was convicted in Gwinnett Country, Georgia, of aggravated battery and cruelty to children in the first degree on Nov. 1, 2006, and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. Using scissors, Adem mutilated the genitals of his 2-year-old daughter. Adem was ordered removed Oct. 31, 2016, based on his criminal convictions. Adem’s case is believed to be the first criminal conviction in the United States for female genital mutilation, and became the catalyst for the specific criminalization of female genital mutilation under Georgia state law.

“A young girl’s life has been forever scarred by this horrible crime,” said Sean W. Gallagher, field office director for the Atlanta ERO Field Office. "The elimination of female genital mutilation/cutting has broad implications for the health and human rights of women and girls, as well as societies at large."

Female genital mutilation/cutting is a federal crime. Any involvement in committing this crime is a serious human rights violation which may result in imprisonment and potential removal from the U.S. Individuals suspected of female genital mutilation/cutting, including sending girls overseas to be cut, may be investigated by ICE’s Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center (HRVWCC). Established in 2009 to further ICE’s efforts to identify, track and prosecute human rights abusers, the HRVWCC leverages the expertise of a select group of agents, lawyers, intelligence and research specialists, historians and analysts who direct the agency’s broader enforcement efforts against these offenders. 

Since 2003, ICE has arrested more than 380 individuals for human rights-related violations of the law under various criminal and/or immigration statutes. During that same period, ICE obtained deportation orders against and physically removed 785 known or suspected human rights violators from the United States. Additionally, ICE has facilitated the departure of an additional 108 such individuals from the United States.

Currently, HSI has more than 160 active investigations into suspected human rights violators and is pursuing more than 1,750 leads and removals cases involving suspected human rights violators from 95 different countries. Since 2003, the HRVWCC has issued more than 70,400 lookouts for individuals from more than 110 countries and stopped 213 human rights violators and war crimes suspects from entering the U.S.

Members of the public who have information about foreign nationals suspected of engaging in human rights abuses or war crimes are urged to call the ICE tip line at - 1-866-DHS-2423 (1-866-347-2423). Callers may remain anonymous. To learn more about the assistance available to victims in these cases, the public should contact ICE’s confidential victim-witness toll-free number at 1-866-872-4973.You can learn more about ICE’s mission to enforce federal laws governing border control, customs, trade and immigration to promote homeland security and public safety at www.ICE.gov.