ICE Detains 1976 Assassination Operative Armando Fernandez Larios for Deportation
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 10
ICE Detains 1976 Assassination Operative Armando Fernandez Larios for Deportation
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 10
Summary
Oct. 27, 2025, ICE agents took Armando Fernandez Larios to a Miami detention center, opening deportation proceedings tied to his role in the 1976 Washington car bombing.
In 1976, Fernandez entered the U.S., gathered surveillance on ex-Chilean ambassador Orlando Letelier and passed it to a Chilean intelligence agent before the bomb killed Letelier and Ronni Karpen Moffitt.
In 1987, he returned to the United States, partially confessed and served five months in prison before U.S. officials helped secure his release; he then lived in Florida for decades.
By January, DHS had labeled him among the "worst of the worst" for homicide, reflecting a sharp reversal from years when U.S. authorities treated him as a useful Cold War ally.