ICE Dallas arrests Mexican national who killed Dallas man and set him on fire

DALLAS - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested a Mexican national in Dallas after he was convicted of a 2022 manslaughter. 

ICE Dallas prioritized the arrest of Manuel Tellez, 48, after identifying him as removable from the country. 

Manuel Tellez, a 48-year-old citizen of Mexico (Source: ICE Dallas)

Dallas Homicide

The backstory:

Court records from the 265th District Court in Dallas County, Texas, revealed police arrested Tellez after he stabbed 52-year-old Anthony Moreno seven times, killing him. Tellez left the crime scene to change clothes, returned with gasoline, then doused Moreno’s body with the gasoline and set it on fire, according to ICE officials and Dallas Police.

Tellez was initially charged with murder but pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of manslaughter. 

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Court documents show he was not sentenced to prison, but was sentenced to eight years of community supervision and was released back into the community. A charge of manslaughter, which is a second-degree felony, comes with a sentence of not more than 20 years or less than 2 years confinement.

The following statement is from Dallas District Attorney John Creuzot:

Any suggestion that we simply let this defendant go because we didn’t care is completely false. As in any case, we worked with the evidence and information available at the time. After indictment, new developments can emerge, witnesses may become unavailable, change their statements, or, as in this case, search warrants obtained by law enforcement and signed by a judge may later be found legally insufficient. These issues were litigated in open court, and anyone can review the transcripts and court records for themselves.

Furthermore, before any plea agreement is reached, we always inform the victim’s family, discuss the challenges of the case, and consult with our colleagues to determine if there exists any additional evidence that could strengthen the case. Our record speaks for itself: we prosecute more murder and capital murder cases per capita than any other large county in the state, and we do not take these cases lightly.

Regarding the defendant’s immigration status, at the time of our involvement, the State of Texas had him listed as a US citizen with a valid Texas driver’s license – this is information that law enforcement, jails, and our office rely on daily. There was no indication that this information was incorrect. Had his status been properly reflected, ICE would have had the opportunity to place a hold on him, and we have no doubt they would have. We have always maintained a strong, cooperative relationship with ICE and all our law enforcement partners, and we hope that remains unchanged.

RELATED: Burned body found in alleyway of Dallas neighborhood, police say

What's next:

 Tellez remains in ICE custody pending immigration removal proceedings.

What they're saying:

"This is an egregious offender," said ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Dallas acting Field Office Director Josh Johnson, "We are grateful for our federal partners within the Justice Department and U.S. Customs and Border Protection for helping us remove this high-priority target from our communities."

ICE and federal law enforcement partners from the FBI and CBP assisted in the arrest of Tellez in Dallas.

What you can do:

Members of the public can report crimes and suspicious activity by dialing 866-347-2423 or completing ICE’s online tip form.