An immigrant who self-deported defends himself after ICE said it was seeking his arrest in N.J.

ImmigrationAn immigrant who self-deported defends himself after ICE said it was seeking his arrest in N.J.Friedrich Castillo-Ormeno returned to Peru months ago, but got calls from relatives saying his name was tied to an incident involving a driver who allegedly hit an ICE officer with his car.Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Friedrich Castillo-Ormeno with his daughter in Peru.Noticias TelemundoShareAdd NBC News to GoogleJune 18, 2026, 4:19 PM EDTBy Nicole Acevedo and Cristina CorujoICE said this week that its officers conducted “a targeted vehicle stop” in New Jersey to detain a Peruvian immigrant who had a final deportation order. But the man ICE said it was looking for had self-deported three months ago — and had received compensation for voluntarily leaving the U.S.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.“It gave me goose bumps, because the accusation involves a very serious matter,” Friedrich Castillo-Ormeno told Noticias Telemundo in Spanish from Pisco, Peru, where he was born.ICE had identified Castillo-Ormeno in a statement it released on Monday that said one of its officers was struck by a vehicle when they “attempted to conduct a vehicle stop” in Manahawkin, New Jersey, to arrest him.“The driver then weaponized his vehicle and struck an officer resulting in the officer discharging his weapon,” ICE said.The ICE officer received medical attention at a hospital after sustaining injuries to his legs.Back in Peru, Castillo-Ormeno said he began receiving phone calls from relatives telling him his name was being tied to the ICE incident.“It’s a serious matter that could affect me — perhaps now, perhaps in the future — because they are practically treating me like a criminal, and I just didn’t know what to do,” Castillo-Ormeno said.Castillo-Ormeno had arrived to the U.S. in the summer of 2022. He remained in the country, continuously checking in with ICE, as his asylum case made its way...