HAMILTON, Ohio — One person was arrested and now faces several charges after a protest outside the Butler County Jail Sunday evening, the Butler County Sheriff announced.
Sheriff Richard Jones issued a press release on social media that said one person was arrested by the Hamilton Police Department during the demonstration, which protested the ICE detention of recent high school graduate Emerson Colindres.
"The Butler County Sheriff's Office deployed personnel to maintain order, ensure public safety and monitor the protest," reads the press release from Jones. "While the majority of attendees demonstrated peacefully, several individuals unlawfully entered the roadway, obstructing traffic and creating a safety hazard."
Jones said one protester was arrested and has been charged with assault, obstructing official business, resisting arrest, failure to disclose personal information and disorderly conduct.
WCPO is working to learn more about the charges and what led up to the arrest on Sunday. As of this publishing Monday, there were no court documents filed in the protester's case.
According to Jones, the protest Sunday evening was attended by around 500 people. They were all there to protest the ICE arrest of Colindres, who was taken into custody last week after he and his family went for what they thought was a regular check-in with immigration officials.
Colindres has never been charged with a crime.
Colindres’ family moved to this country in 2014, when he was 8 years old, seeking asylum after claims of gang activity against them in Honduras. In 2023, that asylum case was denied.
Since his arrest, his classmates, friends and soccer team have rallied for his release. On Sunday, the team gathered to make signs for a protest outside the jail, ahead of the 6 p.m. protest, when they got a call from Colindres.
His friends passed around the phone, asking how he’s doing and trying to lift his spirits.
Hear Colindres speak from jail in the video below:
“They got Pacers scores in there?” one said.
“You should start lifting weights,” another laughed.
Colindres talked to them for almost 20 minutes. And then he spoke to WCPO's Keith BieryGolick.
“I was just ... living life, minding my own business,” Colindres said. “And now I’m here.”
Watch our interview with Colindres’ coach and teammates:
