A Venezuelan TikTok influencer who gained notoriety for his controversial content was taken into custody on Friday, after releasing a series of videos about how migrants could exploit the US welfare system.
TikTok influencer arrested after going viral for encouraging illegal behavior
Leonel Moreno, sparked widespread attention in the media after released a viral video that encouraged the waves of migrants flooding into the United States to abuse squatting laws to take over unoccupied properties.
“If a house is not inhabited, we can seize it,” Moreno told his followers in a video that had amassed millions of views.
He also claimed that the only way for fellow migrants to avoid homelessness and avoid becoming a “public burden” was to “invade” residences that were not being used by their American owners.
While Moreno may have become a viral sensation on the platform, both by amassing followers and inciting the ire of furious property owners, he also attracted the attention of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The outrage over Moreno’s social media messaging put him on ICE’s radar, and led to his arrest mere weeks into his rise to internet infamy.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) verified to the New York Post that Moreno’s entry through the southern border in Texas in April 2022 was not through legal channels.
TikTok influencer is actually a fugitive
He was eventually released into the country by Border Patrol through an Alternatives To Detention program, which required him to check-in with the local Enforcement and Removal Operations office of where he chose to settle after a 60-day period.
Naturally, the guy who publicly encourages the abuse of United States’ laws didn’t do what he was ordered to, and became a fugitive.
If Moreno’s videos are to be believed, he made good use of his time by refusing to work and collecting food stamps. “I don’t like to work,” he said in another video targeted towards migrants. “Boys, in the U.S. there are a million tricks, a million things to do.”
According to Newsweek, Moreno bragged that he collected $350 a week from the United States government, had received a social security card, and made $1,000 a day by hustling on the streets.
“You’re hurt because I make more than you without much work while you work like slaves, understand?” he boasted in another post.
“That’s the difference between you and me. I’m always going to make lots of money without much work, and you’re always going to be exploited and miserable and insignificant.”
After decidedly living the good life on Uncle Sam’s dime, Moreno said he “concluded that the American Dream is real.”
It certainly was for him until TikTok suspended his account, and he was arrested by ICE on Friday.
“On March 29, 2024, Moreno was arrested in Gahanna, Ohio by officers with ERO Detroit’s Columbus office and is currently detained pending further immigration proceedings,” an ICE spokesperson revealed.
“This is food of the best quality that they just give you,” Moreno once crowed in a video. At least he’ll still get three government provided meals a day behind bars.
