Victor Alas v. Eric H. Holder Jr.
Opinion
Opinion
MEMORANDUM
Substantial evidence supports the conclusion of the Board of Immigration Ap peals (“BIA”) that petitioners are statutorily ineligible for relief under § 203 of the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (“NACARA”), Pub.L. No. 105-100, Title II, 111 Stat. 2160 , 2193-2201 (1997), as amended by Pub.L. No. 105-139, 111 Stat. 2644, 2644-45 (1997), under NACARA’s “persecutor bar,” which precludes special rule cancellation for individuals who “ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in the persecution of an individual because of the individual’s race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.” 8 C.F.R. § 1240.66 (a); 8 U.S.C. § 1231 (b)(3)(B)®.
Although Alas did not directly participate in physical acts of torture or murder, substantial evidence supports the BIA’s conclusion that his conduct was material, not merely tangential, to the persecution. See Miranda Alvarado v. Gonzales, 449 F.3d 915, 928 (9th Cir.2006) (applying persecutor bar to alien who did not participate in physical acts of torture, but materially assisted by translating during interrogation sessions).