Bizarre, International, MediaJuly 23, 2025
The Legend of Luis Leon: The Media Embraces Another Anti-Ice Hoax
“When the legend becomes fact…print the legend.” Those words from an editor to a young reporter in “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” still appear to be the modus operandi of the media. That was demonstrated this week with the legend of Luis Leon after The Morning Call in Allentown, PA, printed yet another harrowing account of ICE agents “disappearing” an immigrant. According to a story quickly picked up by other eager outlets, the 82-year-old grandfather, a legal asylum holder, was roughed up and then deported to Guatemala. The problem is that there appears to be no proof supporting the story of the “family members” cited by the reporter.
According to The Morning Call, Luis Leon, a Chilean national, was trying to replace his lost green card at a local USCIS office when he was suddenly deported to the wrong country, Guatemala, and he ended up in a hospital with pneumonia. The story further recounted how Leon’s wife was kept in custody in brutal conditions for 10 hours before she was released.
Media, including The Guardian, eagerly picked up the story of another “disappearing” of an immigrant. As the story went viral, a few people decided actually to look into the case and found that it not only made no sense but there is no evidence of such a deportation. For its part, The Morning Call changed key facts but did not withdraw the story as a hoax.
https://jonathanturley.org/2025/07/23/the-legion-of-luis-leon-the-media-embraces-another-anti-ice-hoax/
