WASHINGTON — Immigration and Customs Enforcement released new information about the criminal history and immigration status of former Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent Ian Roberts.
ICE reports that Roberts is now in custody of the U.S. Marshals, and he will be prosecuted for his crimes. The department reports on Thursday, he was criminally charged with being an illegal alien in possession of firearms.
ICE shared his criminal background that begins with 1996 charges for having and selling narcotics and an item used for forgery.
The department also shared his immigration history, with it starting in 1994 when he landed in JFK Airport as a tourist. He later returned at some point before he was arrested in 1996.
In 1998, Roberts had a charge of unauthorized use of a vehicle in New York that was later dismissed.
In 1999, he entered the U.S. through San Francisco International Airport with a F-1 student visa set to expire in 2004. He would enter and leave the country a few times in the next few years using the student visa.
Roberts filed an application for employment authorization that was approved by ICE in April 2000, with it expiring in 2001.
Roberts filed a green card application that was rejected in January 2003.
Roberts then was charged with speeding, reckless driving and unsafe operation in Maryland in 2012.
Second, third, and fourth green card applications were declined in 2018. Another employment authorization document was approved in 2019, with it expiring in 2020.
In February 2020, Roberts was charged with having a loaded firearm and ammunition. Two years later, he was convicted in Pennsylvania for having a loaded weapon.
Roberts was ordered to appear in front of an immigration judge in 2020. His case was not heard until May 2024, when a judge ordered his removal from the U.S., though Roberts did not appear in person.
An immigration judge denied Roberts’ motion to reopen his case in April 2025.
That brings the timeline to last Friday, where he was arrested with a pistol, hunting knife, and $3,000 in cash.
Des Moines Public Schools is now suing the consulting firm that was involved in the hiring of Roberts. He was hired at the district despite his false claims of having a doctoral degree.
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