Who is Ian Roberts? Iowa’s largest school district superintendent arrested by ICE for living and working in US illegally

Ian Roberts, the superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools and leader of Iowa’s largest school district, was arrested Friday by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement after fleeing into the woods during a traffic stop, shocking educators and the local community. Roberts, originally from Guyana, was in the United States illegally and had no work authorization, ICE said.

He was subject to a final removal order issued in 2024.

ICE said Roberts was stopped while driving his school-issued vehicle. After abandoning the car near a wooded area, he was located and taken into custody with help from Iowa State Patrol officers. Officials have not disclosed where Roberts is being held or whether he has legal representation.


Phil Roeder, spokesperson for the district, said he had been scheduled to meet Roberts at a school event but received a text from him saying he could not attend. Roeder later witnessed the detention via a video call. “The district has seen nothing that would suggest that he's not a citizen,” he said.

ICE reported that Roberts was carrying a loaded handgun, $3,000 in cash, and a fixed-blade hunting knife at the time of his arrest. Sam Olson, ICE regional official, said, “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.”

Roberts, 54, began as Des Moines superintendent in July 2023, overseeing a district with more than 30,000 students and nearly 5,000 staff. He earned a $270,000 annual base salary and holds a professional administrator license issued by the state board of educational examiners in 2023. District leaders described him as a dynamic and engaged educator.

Jackie Norris, school board president, called Roberts “an integral part of our school community” who has “shown up in ways big and small.” Union leaders in Iowa said they were shocked by the arrest and praised Roberts as “a tremendous advocate for students, families, staff, and the community.”

Roberts was born to immigrant parents from Guyana and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from Coppin State University in 1998 and competed for Guyana in the 2000 Olympics. ICE said he entered the U.S. on a student visa in 1999.

Court records show Roberts pleaded guilty in Pennsylvania in January 2022 to unlawfully possessing a loaded firearm in a vehicle while hunting. He was fined $100 plus court costs and said at the time he left his hunting rifle visible in his car to avoid alarming officers.

This arrest follows another aggressive ICE action in Iowa on Thursday, when agents in plain clothes detained a man at a grocery store in Iowa City, prompting concerns over the agency’s approach in the state.