ICE arrested a Milwaukee man it says threatened to kill President Trump. His attorneys say that’s not true.

Attorneys for a Milwaukee man arrested after federal officials claimed he wrote a letter threatening to kill President Donald Trump say the man can’t read or write in English and did not write the letter.

Ramon Morales Reyes, 54, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents last week. A Wednesday statement from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said he had “threatened to assassinate President Trump.”

“Thanks to our ICE officers, this illegal alien who threatened to assassinate President Trump is behind bars,” U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote. 

The statement said an ICE officer got a letter in the mail from Morales Reyes on May 21. A copy of the letter was included in the statement. 

“I will self deport myself back to Mexico but not before I use my 30 yard 6 to shoot your precious president in [his] head,” the letter said.

“I will see him at one of his big ralleys,” the letter added.

Morales Reyes was arrested one day later, according to the statement. He’s currently in custody at the ICE detention facility in Dodge County.

However, Kime Abduli, the attorney for the man, said Morales Reyes told her he didn’t write the letter. 

“He does not speak any English and definitely cannot write in it,” Abduli said during a Friday press conference.

Abduli said she spoke with Morales Reyes on Thursday night about the allegations.

“He has confirmed that he’s had nothing to do with this,” Abduli said. “In fact, he’s just as shocked as any of us about these allegations. He was very, very surprised to even hear me ask about it.”

After the arrest and statement, a CNN report said the man might have been set up by another person who is involved in a criminal case in which Morales Reyes was a victim. Abduli said that Morales Reyes was the victim of an armed robbery and assault in Milwaukee that happened over a year ago.

A statement from the Milwaukee Police Department said the department is, “investigating an identity theft and victim intimidation incident related to this incident.”

The statement said the department cannot confirm the names of the people involved because the investigation is still ongoing, “and no one has been criminally charged at this time.” 

Milwaukee County District Attorney Kent Lovern also said his office is currently reviewing the incident.

Abduli said she could not provide further information about victim intimidation allegations.

“That’s kind of an ongoing investigation right now,” she said Friday.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security statement said Morales Reyes had entered the country illegally at least nine times from 1998 to 2005 and that he had a criminal record. 

“His criminal record includes arrests for felony hit and run, criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct with a domestic abuse modifier,” the statement said. 

WPR reached out to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Friday about the case.

“The investigation into the threat is ongoing,” a senior DHS official wrote in an email. “Over the course of the investigation, this individual was determined to be in the country illegally and that he had a criminal record. He will remain in custody.”

During the press conference, Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of the immigrant rights group Voces de la Frontera, asked Noem to issue a correction regarding the letter.

“This false claim has now had the consequence that the family, you know, feels that their lives are being threatened because of the comments made against them on social media,” Neumann-Ortiz said. “They want his name cleared.” 

Abduli said Morales Reyes  was working as a dishwasher and had three children who were born in America. She was already working with him to get a U-visa, or a “U nonimmigrant status” for people who are “victims of certain crimes,” according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Abduli said the application for his U-visa is still pending. 

Attorney Cain Oulahan is working with Morales Reyes now regarding his possible deportation. He said Morales Reyes has a hearing in immigration court in Chicago next week. 

Oulahan said he wasn’t sure about the statement that said he had left the country from 1998 to 2005, but he said immigration court will mainly focus on his life in the past 10 years. 

“Everyone in this country deserves due process and has the right to due process under the Constitution, and he’s no different,” Oulahan said. “He has the right to his day in court, and he’s going to get that fortunately.”