Former western Kansas mayor surrenders to ICE custody
By Lily O’Brien
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WICHITA, Kansas (KAKE) — The former mayor of Coldwater, Kansas, Jose “Joe” Ceballos, turned himself in to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
His surrender came on Wednesday morning, following an order from immigration officials.
As he walked into an office and into ICE custody in Wichita, he said he doesn’t know when he’ll come back out.
“I’m obviously nervous,” said Ceballos. “I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
In April, Ceballos pleaded guilty to misdemeanor election charges tied to voting as a non-citizen.
“What I was told by the ICE officers… is that he was arrested on an administrative warrant,” said immigration attorney Sarah Balderas. “They’re essentially saying that he’s removable from the United States for past conduct.”
Ceballos is a legal resident of the United States, but not a U.S. citizen.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, he started the citizenship process in February 2025. DHS also says Ceballos was convicted of battery in 1995.
Days after Ceballos was re-elected Mayor of Coldwater the following November, DHS released his voter registration forms, saying he illegally voted and committed a felony by claiming citizenship.
It says he committed another felony by lying on naturalization paperwork and saying he had never claimed U.S. citizenship.
Ceballos’ plea deal, though, knocked those charges down to misdemeanors.
“I’m disappointed,” said one of his attorneys, Jess Hoeme. “I thought our system was smarter and better than this.”
Hoeme says he believed the agreement resolved the criminal case and wouldn’t impact his dealings with immigration.
“He thought this was already taken care of via Kris Kobach. He even paid a $2,000 fine. Why is he having to be double-judged, double-punished?” questioned protester Lori Lawrence.
Over a dozen people gathered in the east Wichita office parking lot in support of Ceballos and against ICE action.
“They thought it was all over, and I myself felt like I was misled,” said Ceballos. “I’m sure the supportive people feel the same way.”
Those supportive people followed Ceballos as he made his way through the building’s doors to turn himself in to ICE shortly before 11:00 a.m. They chanted his name, exclaiming support.
They then trailed to a fence, where a handful of people stood behind, appearing to be federal officers. A confrontation of those officers ensued, with protesters shouting out “free Joe!” and “ICE out!” through the fence.
“ICE has soldiers back there in full battle gear with rifles, telling our protesters that they need to leave. What about free speech?” said Hoeme. “What kind of statement does that say about our government?”
Steps away, the property manager also told protesters to leave, as the building is private property.
“You can threaten us. That doesn’t mean we’re going to leave. We’re determined to be here,” said protester Janice Bradley. “We’re determined to show our support for the mayor who should not be in this position, who thought this was taken care of, and now he’s facing deportation.”
After legal scrutiny and applause from a full courthouse at Ceballos’ hearing, where the plea agreement was read, he now heads into an arena he, his wife, and his supporters feared for months.
“They can’t believe it’s happening to a guy like myself, trying to live the American dream… and it can be taken away from me,” said Ceballos.
Balderas says he will likely be held in the Wichita building before being moved to a larger detention facility.
“Very scary…You hear stories — whether they’re true or not — about people being detained and not getting their chance to hear in court, and that’s what we’re afraid of,” said Ceballos.
Ceballos has since been transferred to the Chase County Jail.
From here, Balderas says a bond hearing will be scheduled and adds there’s a hope the judge will agree with their claim that Ceballos is worthy of being released on bond.
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