NEW YORK. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security says Immigration and Customs Enforcement took custody of a man charged in Nassau County after a series of vehicle fires in Freeport, a Long Island case with local public-safety implications.
What DHS reported
According to the DHS release, Nassau County police arrested Elder Lopez-Avalos on May 10, 2026, on fire and arson charges connected to multiple cars. DHS said several fires were reported near a children’s center parking area. The charges are accusations, and the case should be followed through local court records for final outcomes.
DHS said the Nassau County Police Department cooperated with ICE, with assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and that ICE took Lopez-Avalos into custody on May 12. The agency said he remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
Why this matters locally
For BigNY readers, the item is relevant because it connects a Nassau County criminal case, federal immigration enforcement, and local law-enforcement cooperation. It may matter to residents tracking public safety, immigration enforcement policy, and official agency actions in the New York metro area.
The DHS release also includes broader agency claims about detainers and New York jurisdictions. Readers should treat those figures as DHS statements and compare them with state, county, court, and local law-enforcement records where available.
BigNY is summarizing the official DHS notice in original form and linking to the source so readers can review the agency’s full statement directly.
Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Read the official DHS release.