Man cleared in murder case goes free 19 years in prison, month in ICE detention

A man released from prison in December after serving nearly 20 years for a double-murder, only to land in an immigration detention facility, went free on bond Friday.

Gabriel Solache and his co-defendant, Arturo Reyes, had their convictions for the 1998 killings tossed after a judge ruled their confessions to the crime had likely been beaten out of them. But while the two men, both Mexican nationals who entered the U.S. illegally in the 1990s, were no longer stuck serving life sentences, they were turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents before they could set foot outside prison.

Solache posted $7,500 bond and left the downtown Chicago Immigration Court building around noon. Reyes, who has agreed to voluntarily return to Mexico, still is in custody; ICE attorneys have said they intend to appeal his request to leave voluntarily, instead favoring a forced removal that would make it more difficult for Reyes to return to the United States legally someday.

Sporting just a custom Cubs jersey against the bitter cold, Solache told reporters he had no plans for his first afternoon as a free man since 1998.

“I’m just (going to ) enjoy my freedom,” Solache said.

Solache’s current attorney, Karen Daniel, complained that Solache’s release on bond had been delayed by immigration officials’ attempt to convince an immigration judge that the pair were a threat to public safety — using as evidence the confessions that a judge last fall ruled were coerced by now-retired Chicago Police detective Reynaldo Guevara.

Solache no longer has family in the U.S. and intends to return voluntarily to Mexico after settling his affairs in the U.S., Daniel said. So far, neither man has yet attempted to qualify for a “U Visa,” which is legal resident status offered to immigrants who have been victims of crimes.

Attorney Alexa Van Brunt said the two men would file lawsuits against the city and Guevara over their convictions, but noted that the likelihood that both men would likely be returned to Mexico in as little as a few weeks complicated their efforts.

Solache and Reyes both had claimed they were punched and kicked by Guevara, who faces similar accusations of abuse in dozens of cases, before they made their confessions. Because Guevara had repeatedly taken the Fifth Amendment when questioned about abuse allegations against him, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office made the unprecedented move of offering Guevara immunity.

Still, while on the witness stand, the retired detective claimed not to remember the case and made meek denials when asked about the alleged beatings.

Judge James Obbish stated Guevara’s testimony was “bald-faced lies” and ruled the detective’s testimony was not credible. Prosecutors, claiming they still believed Solache and Reyes were guilty, dropped the case in December. Both men had been serving life sentences. Solache’s original death sentence had been commuted to life by Gov. George Ryan.

At an immigration hearing this week in Chicago, officials presented the two confessions obtained by Guevara in 1992, as well as confessions from co-defendant Adriana Mejia and two witness statements. An immigration judge ruled that since the confessions had been ruled inadmissible, he would not consider them in weighing whether to grant bond.