Authorities in Texas are investigating Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis over an operation to transport 50 immigrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts last week, a move that angered many Democrats and angered locals on the island. Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, a Democrat, said he is opening a criminal investigation into immigrants who were “lured” from the Immigrant Resource Center under “false pretenses” and flown to Florida, where they were eventually left to fend for themselves at Martha’s . Vineyard, he said in a video message to announce the investigation. “Here we have 48 people who are already on hard times. They are here legally in our country at that point,” he said. “I think they were preyed upon. Someone came from the state, victimized these people, lured them in with promises of a better life, which was absolutely what they were looking for.” Salazar said his office is working with attorneys and advocacy groups. FLORIDA GOV. DESANTIS SAYS THERE ARE FUNDS TO ACCEPT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS OUTSIDE HIS COUNTRY DeSantis, a Republican, said he is responsible for two charter flights that carried Venezuelan migrants from San Antonio to Florida and then to Martha’s Vineyard. In a statement, his office said the immigrants have been abandoned in Bexar County and “left to fend for themselves.” “Florida gave them an opportunity to seek greener pastures in a sanctuary jurisdiction that offered them greater resources, as we expected. Unless the MA National Guard abandoned these individuals, they were provided with lodging, food, clothing, and more options to succeed after being unfairly lured to the United States, unlike the 53 migrants who died in a truck found abandoned in Bexar County in June,” the statement said, referring to the deaths of 53 migrants found in a locked commercial in San Antonio truck earlier this year. The arrival of the immigrants caught city leaders and homeless advocates on the island by surprise. “Dealing with migrant populations is nothing new for us, but with a plane landing, and you don’t even know it’s coming, that puts a different level of crisis intervention,” Sue Diverio, executive director of Harbor Homes. a shelter that was helping raise funds to care for immigrants, he told Fox News Digital last week. “It was definitely an unexpected arrival of refugees.” A Texas sheriff said Monday that he is launching an investigation against Florida for transporting immigrants from his county to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. (Photo by Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) The move also angered many Democrats, who criticized DeSantis for playing with people’s lives to score political points. Some said the move was illegal and likened it to human trafficking. The DeSantis administration said the immigrants were informed of their destination and given “multiple” opportunities to decline travel. Officials said the individuals were offered hotels, meals, showers and haircuts for a few days before the trip and that some actually refused to go. The administration also said that rumors that migrants were promised jobs on Martha’s Vineyard were also untrue and that people were simply presented with information about benefits and services typically found on refuges. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom sent a letter asking Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate whether DeSantis could be charged with kidnapping, despite starting a program as mayor of San Francisco who led thousands of homeless people out of San Francisco and the state. Fox News’ Jessica Chasmar contributed to this report.
