Meanwhile, in a separate case, federal immigration officials have permitted a suspect involved in a $100 million jewelry heist to self-deport, enabling him to avoid trial and potential incarceration.

Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores, aged 42, was among seven individuals accused last year of tailing an armored truck to a secluded rest area along a freeway in California. There, they allegedly stole a bounty of diamonds, emeralds, gold, rubies, and luxury watches in July 2022—a heist considered to be the largest of its kind in U.S. history.

Facing charges of conspiracy to commit theft from interstate and foreign shipments, as well as theft from interstate and foreign shipments, Flores was looking at a possible 15-year sentence in federal prison. He entered a plea of not guilty.

According to court documents, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilitated Flores’s deportation late last month after he requested a voluntary departure.

In an unusual move, federal immigration authorities granted Flores, a suspect in the monumental $100 million jewelry heist, permission to return to Ecuador on his own accord. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

The jewelers that the suspects stole from are also seeking answers from immigration authorities.

“When a defendant in a major federal theft case leaves the country before trial, victims are left without answers, without a verdict, and without closure,” Jerry Kroll, an attorney for some of the jewelry companies, told the Los Angeles Times.

Flores’ attorney, John D. Robertson, motioned to dismiss the indictment against his client, asking for the charges to be permanently dismissed and for the case to be closed.

Federal prosecutors said they still want to bring Flores to trial, asking for the charges to be dropped “without prejudice” to allow for a future criminal prosecution.

While Flores was a lawful permanent resident and released on bail, he was transferred to ICE custody in September, according to court filings. Federal prosecutors said they were unaware he had an immigration detainer.

Robertson argued that this violates his client’s criminal prosecution rights and justifies his motion to dismiss his case.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores late last month after he asked for a voluntary departure. (Getty Images)

Flores requested deportation to Chile during an immigration hearing on Dec. 16, according to court documents. The judge denied his voluntary departure application but issued a final order of removal.

He was then deported to Ecuador.

“Prosecutors are supposed to allow the civil immigration process to play out independently while criminal charges are pending,” federal prosecutors wrote in their motion opposing efforts to dismiss the case. “That is exactly what they did in this case — unwittingly to defendant’s benefit in that he will now avoid trial, and any potential conviction and sentence, unless and until he returns to the United States.”

Immigration officials would typically inform prosecutors what was happening if a criminal defendant had immigration proceedings against them. In minor cases, a defendant can sometimes choose to self-deport instead of facing prosecution.

Former federal prosecutor Laurie Levenson said what happened in Flores’ case is highly unusual, particularly because of the significance in this case.

Federal prosecutors said they still want to bring Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores to trial. (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)

“It’s just beyond me how they would deport him without the prosecutors … being in on the conversation,” Levenson told The Associated Press. “This really was the left hand not knowing what the right hand was doing.”

The jewelry heist was carried out in July 2022 after the suspects stalked a Brink’s tractor-trailer leaving an international jewelry show near San Francisco with dozens of bags of jewels, according to the indictment. The victims reported more than $100 million in losses, but Brink’s said the stolen items were worth under $10 million.

According to a lawsuit filed by the security company, one of the drivers was asleep inside the vehicle and the other was grabbing food inside the rest stop when the thieves broke in.