Leah Barkoukis | September 27, 2025 3:30 PM | Townhall
Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested the Superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, Ian Andre Roberts, a criminal illegal alien from Guyana, on Thursday.
Roberts, head of the largest public school district in the state, was in possession of a loaded handgun, $3,000 in cash, and a fixed blade hunting knife at the time of his arrest, according to a statement from ICE.
He entered the U.S. in 1999 on a student visa and in May of 2024, was given a final order of removal by an immigration judge. He also had existing weapon possession charges from 2020.
Authorities approached Roberts during a targeted enforcement operation, but he fled in his vehicle, which was later found near a wooded area, ICE said. Iowa State Patrol assisted in locating Roberts.
“This suspect was arrested in possession of a loaded weapon in a vehicle provided by Des Moines Public Schools after fleeing federal law enforcement,” said ICE ERO St. Paul Field Office Director Sam Olson in a statement. “This should be a wake-up call for our communities to the great work that our officers are doing every day to remove public safety threats. How this illegal alien was hired without work authorization, a final order of removal, and a prior weapons charge is beyond comprehension and should alarm the parents of that school district.”
Editor’s Note: We voted for mass deportations, not mass amnesty. Help us continue to fight back against those trying to go against the will of the American people.
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Who is Ian Roberts? What to know about the Des Moines superintendent arrested by ICE
Kate Kealey – Des Moines Register – Update Sept. 26, 2025
Ian Roberts, the superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Friday, Sept. 26.
Associate Superintendent Matt Smith will serve as interim superintendent until further notice, according to a message from Des Moines School Board Chair Jackie Norris. The Des Moines Independent Community School District has no confirmed information as to why Roberts was detained or what the “next potential steps are,” according to the email from the district.
Why was Ian Roberts detained by ICE?
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed to the Register that Roberts was detained and said a “final order of removal” was issued for Roberts’ deportation in May 2024. DHS Spokesperson told the Register that Roberts abandoned his car and fled from police on Friday. He was found in possession of a loaded gun, a large amount of cash, and a hunting knife.
The Iowa Department of Public Safety confirmed it aided ICE in locating Roberts, who fled from a traffic stop. Roberts is now in the custody of immigration authorities and being held at the Pottawattamie County Jail in western Iowa.
Where is Ian Roberts from?
Roberts, who is 54, was born in Guyana in 1970, according to ICE, and he described the country in South America as “his birthplace” in an interview with Coppin State University published ahead of the 2020 Olympics.
He “spent his formative years” in Brooklyn, New York, according to his biography on the Des Moines district’s website.
Roberts graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Coppin State University in Baltimore in 1998, according to the school. He received his doctorate in education with a focus on urban educational leadership. Roberts also has a master’s degree in education from St. John’s University in Queens, New York.
Roberts said he was married with four dogs, when he was hired as superintendent in 2023.
He is the first person of color to serve as Des Moines Public Schools’ superintendent, the largest and most diverse school district in Iowa.
How long has Ian Roberts been superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools?
Roberts became the superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools in July 2023. He succeeded longtime Superintendent Tom Ahart, who resigned at the end of the 2021-2022 school year.
Before coming to Des Moines, Roberts served as superintendent of Millcreek Township School District, located in a suburban area outside of Erie, Pennsylvania. He also worked in the St. Louis Public Schools as the high school network superintendent.
When was Ian Roberts an Olympic athlete?
Before a career in education, Roberts competed in the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games in track and field for Guyana as a mid-distance runner. He ran in the fourth heat of the 800-meter race with a time of 1.52.32. He placed seventh in his heat, according to Olympedia.
Roberts made national headlines when he raced against Des Moines elementary students in 2024, as part of a school raffle, in his classic suit, bowtie and Nike Air Force One tennis shoes.
Where did Ian Roberts work before Des Moines?
Dr. Ian Roberts served as the Chief Schools Officer of Aspire Public Schools, a system of public charter schools, according to the Millcreek Township School District news release issued when he was announced as superintendent there. His district for Aspire included schools in Los Angeles, the Bay Area, the Central Valley, and Memphis.
He previously served as a school principal and principal-supervisor in Baltimore City, Washington, D.C., and the South Bronx, New York, the release said.
What does ICE do?
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, is a federal agency that enforces U.S. immigration laws. ICE officers are intended to target “public safety threats,” including convicted criminals who are not U.S. citizens, but have entered the country.
With an $8 billion annual budget, the agency focuses on three operational directorates, according to ICE’s website. They include Homeland Security Investigations, Enforcement and Removal Operations, and the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor.
Where is Guyana?
Guyana is a country in the northeastern corner of South America. It is north of Brazil and east of Venezuela, on the Atlantic Ocean. There are more than 825,000 people in Guyana, with Georgetown serving as the capital.
DMPS superintendent Ian Roberts may face long shot bid to stay in US, but much is unclear. Who conducted the background check on Des Moines Superintendent Ian Roberts? What we know. Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent Ian Roberts arrested by ICE. Des Moines school board votes to put Superintendent Ian Roberts on leave after ICE arrest. Superintendent of Iowa’s largest district remains in U.S. after ICE arrest, attorney says. Who is Ian Roberts? What to know about the Des Moines superintendent arrested by ICE
Kate Kealey is a general assignment reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach her at kkealey@registermedia.com or follow her on Twitter at @Kkealey17.
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Who is Ian Roberts, the Iowa school superintendent accused by ICE of being in the US illegally?
A year into his tenure as superintendent of Iowa’s largest school district, former Olympian Ian Roberts made headlines when – in a maroon three-piece suit, candy cane striped bow tie and matching Nike Air Force 1 sneakers – he ran a 100-meter dash against some of his elementary school students.
An 11-year-old crossed the finish line a few steps ahead of Roberts, who represented Guyana in the 800 meters in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
It was a small but unforgettable lesson.
“I raced an Olympian,” fifth grader Amayah Vilmael, a student athlete whose parents are from Nigeria and Haiti, said after the May 2024 race, according to KCCI. “I’m going to keep that in my mind forever.”
Roberts said, “The work we do is so much more than reading, writing and math.”
On Friday, the popular superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools again made headlines after he was detained by immigration officers, according to the Department of Homeland Security, which claims he’s in the country illegally and has weapon possession charges.
Roberts was then placed on paid administrative leave pending more information by the Des Moines Public School Board on Saturday after a vote determined he was unable to perform his duties.
“Yesterday came as a shock to all of us. I want to be clear today: We still do not have all of the facts,” Board Chair Jackie Norris said at the meeting.
For Roberts’ colleagues, the more than 30,000 students he oversaw and their parents, the episode offered another unforgettable lesson: A close-up look at the Trump administration’s unrelenting crackdown on immigration – which has seen raids on workplaces and arrests of community pillars such as a firefighter, a journalist and a pastor.
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DES MOINES, Iowa —
Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts was taken into custody by federal immigration officials Friday morning in Des Moines.
Roberts has been superintendent at DMPS since July 1, 2023. Prior to that, he was a superintendent in Pennsylvania at Millcreek Township School District. He has also worked in school districts in St. Louis, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and South Bronx, New York.
A biography page for Roberts on the DMPS website says he was born to immigrant parents from Guyana and spent most of his childhood in Brooklyn, New York.
Roberts received his undergraduate education from Coppin State University, has master’s degrees from St. John’s University and Georgetown University, and a doctorate from Trident University.
Trident University International is a private, for-profit online university based in Chandler, Arizona. It is a member of the American InterContinental University System and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It is owned by Perdoceo Education Corporation, formerly known as Career Education Corporation. In other words a mail-order degree.
“When considering candidates, the board was looking for educational experience, academic excellence, and a passion for innovation and inspiration, and we found those qualities and more in Dr. Roberts,” then-Des Moines Public Schools Board Chair Teree Caldwell-Johnson said when Roberts was hired in 2023. “Dr. Roberts’ focus on creating equitable experiences for students to thrive, paired with his commitment to continuous improvement, creates an exciting opportunity for our students, staff and community.”
Outside of education, Roberts ran the 800 meters for his native Guyana in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Roberts was recently on KCCI to discuss the DMPS Reimagining Education initiative.
Lord Buckbeak: "Will you come into my parlor?," said the Spider to the Fly. 
How sad, arresting a highly educated man that was trying to help a future generation of kids in Iowa (where nobody wishes to reside.) The U.S. has departed from it’s ethos of a ‘welcoming nation’…
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Ian Roberts, whose deportation order was issued in May 2024 under the Biden administration, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents last week after fleeing in his car and then on foot with a loaded handgun, a fixed-blade hunting knife and $3,000 in cash. He had existing weapon possession charges. The school board president is Jackie Norris, who served as chief of staff to first lady Michelle Obama. Obama was a huge DEI fan and obviously her chief of staff was also. This criminal, illegal alien with a “doctorate” from an online, mail order university who probably plagiarized his thesis like the former president of Harvard should never have been in a position to influence or direct the education of children in the first place.
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