![\"Fresno](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/FRS_EPZ_ROB_FUENTES_01.JPG\" "\\"Fresno")
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Fresno City Council District 1 candidate Rob Fuentes, photographed Monday, July 6, 2026, in Fresno.<\/p>\n
ERIC PAUL ZAMORA<\/p>\n
ezamora@fresnobee.com<\/p>\n
Facing criticism over his role as a federal prosecutor in immigration cases, Fresno City Council candidate Robert Fuentes has resigned as an assistant U.S. attorney, he told The Fresno Bee on Monday.<\/p>\n
Fuentes, a candidate for Fresno City Council and State Center Community College District trustee, said he was placed on administrative leave June 26 \u2014 one day after he made comments about federal immigration in an interview with digital news publication Fresnoland.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was pushed out by the Trump administration after I criticized ICE publicly,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Results from the June 2 primary election showed only 254 votes separated Fuentes from the top vote-earner, Naindeep Singh, a Central Unified school board trustee and leader of the Jakara Movement.<\/p>\n
Certified results showed Singh\u2019s lead at 39% to 37% for the District 1 seat. Because neither achieved a majority in the four-person primary, the two will face off in the Nov. 3 general election to represent the district, an area that includes west-central Fresno.<\/p>\n
Fuentes and Singh are running to succeed Annalisa Perea, who is running for state Assembly. She endorsed Fuentes, a one-term SCCCD trustee first elected in 2022.<\/p>\n
A Department of Justice spokesperson had no comment on Fuentes\u2019 leave or resignation, citing a policy of not commenting on personnel matters.<\/p>\n
![\"Fresno](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/FRS_EPZ_ROB_FUENTES_03.JPG\" "\\"FRS_EPZ_ROB_FUENTES_03.JPG\\"")
Fresno City Council District 1 candidate Rob Fuentes answers questions from The Fresno Bee\u2019s David Taub, photographed Monday, July 6, 2026, in Fresno. ERIC PAUL ZAMORA ezamora@fresnobee.com Fuentes: ICE comments led to anticipated firing<\/p>\n
Fuentes said he turned in his letter of resignation to U.S. Attorney Eric Grant on July 3. It was accepted.<\/p>\n
Quoted in Fresnoland with a desire to \u201cabolish ICE,\u201d Fuentes was placed on leave one day later, he told The Bee. Fuentes said Monday he anticipated eventually being fired, so he resigned to \u201cmake it easier.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very clear to me, both as a private citizen and as an attorney, that ICE has used unlawful tactics in numerous instances, and I\u2019ve expressed that criticism internally, and I\u2019ve expressed it publicly, and it was the public expression of my viewpoint that led to me being pushed out,\u201d Fuentes said.<\/p>\n
Speaking to The Bee on Monday, Fuentes did not call for ICE\u2019s abolition, but said the agency \u201cneeds to be significantly reformed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn its current form, it\u2019s just not operating as a lawful institution,\u201d Fuentes said.<\/p>\n
Fuentes said he stayed with the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office after the Trump Administration returned to power in January 2025, because he believed he could still have a positive impact from within.<\/p>\n
The California State Bar admitted Fuentes in 2016. In his 10 years practicing law, Fuentes worked in private practice, and as an attorney for the federal court before joining the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office in 2023 as a prosecutor.<\/p>\n
A Central Valley native, Fuentes graduated from Stanford, earned a master\u2019s degree at Harvard, and his juris doctor from Yale. He also teaches classes at San Joaquin College of Law.<\/p>\n
Fuentes worked on immigration detention cases<\/p>\n
Fuentes called allegations that he worked to deport immigrants \u201ca flat-out lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
The record shows that Fuentes worked on habeas corpus cases \u2014 when a motion is filed to challenge the right of the government to detain a suspect. While immigration cases have their own legal system, habeas corpus cases are filed with the federal district court. He did not work directly on deportation cases.<\/p>\n
Fuentes said that he and other attorneys were assigned to defend habeas corpus cases in May, as the caseload piled up. Normally, he worked on filing civil enforcement cases for civil rights violations, fraud and wildfires.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have been extremely committed to the rule of law and to following the Constitution and to ensuring that every individual\u2019s rights have been respected,\u201d Fuentes said. He said in most cases, the judge ordered the detainee to be released as the immigration case played out.<\/p>\n
Fuentes criticizes Singh<\/p>\n
Fuentes believes a Singh supporter pitched the allegation to media outlets that he worked to deport immigrants. He would not name names. In a Facebook post and video<\/a>, he called it \u201cdirty politics.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s clear that one of my opponent\u2019s supporters had been keeping an eye on the cases I\u2019d been handling, and as soon as he got wind of these cases, he said, \u2018Oh, great, we got him,\u2019\u201d Fuentes said.<\/p>\n Fuentes said fending off the allegations of deporting immigrants is \u201ca big distraction, which I believe was their aim.\u201d<\/p>\n He said work on immigration issues between him and Singh is, \u201cnight and day.\u201d<\/p>\n Fuentes referred to his work in private practice, defending immigrants from deportation.<\/p>\n \u201cMy opponent\u2019s work, so to speak, in this field is limited to the virtue signaling. Whereas my work has been focused on actual, concrete actions that have made improvements in the lives of immigrants,\u201d Fuentes said. He also called Singh\u2019s work \u201cperformative because it hasn\u2019t achieved any tangible result.\u201d<\/p>\n Singh leads The Jakara Movement, which describes itself<\/a> as \u201ca grassroots community-building organization working to empower, educate, and organize working-class Punjabi Sikhs, and other marginalized communities.\u201d<\/p>\n He responded to Fuentes\u2019 comments, saying he \u201cwelcome scrutiny of our records.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve spent years fighting for our residents, including standing up to Trump policies that harmed our immigrant communities. I don\u2019t expect Mr. Fuentes to know of our track record as he only very recently moved into the district. However, we have been at the forefront of defending immigrant rights to work and fighting wage theft,\u201d Singh said.<\/p>\n Fuentes said he moved into the district last year, after living in District 3. He also accuses Singh of just recently moving into District 1.<\/p>\n Singh also referenced a comment from immigration attorney George Rios \u2014 who filed a habeas corpus case against the federal government. Rios called out Fuentes for not being transparent about his work with the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s concerning when your message … saying he supports abolishing ICE, but at the same time he\u2019s not only entering his appearance to represent ICE in cases involving illegal detention, but he actually filed arguments defending those illegal detention practices,\u201d Rios told The Bee.<\/p>\n Singh said \u201cthe same standard should apply to everyone … the public deserves to see the full record.\u201d<\/p>\n If elected, Fuentes wants to establish a legal defense fund for immigrants but would not make it a priority over affordability, public safety and neighborhood revitalization, he said.<\/p>\n Fuentes said he plans to spend the next four months on his campaign, working as a SCCCD trustee, and teaching.<\/p>\n A group called Fresno Resistance is calling for Fuentes to resign as SCCCD trustee.<\/p>\n \u201cFor many in Fresno, particularly families directly impacted by immigration enforcement, these revelations have raised profound questions about transparency, accountability, and whether his professional responsibilities are consistent with the values expected of the President of a community college district that serves thousands of immigrant and mixed-status students,\u201d the group said in a news release. \u201cRob Fuentes has failed on all these fronts by concealing his specific work with ICE.\u201d<\/p>\n The group claimed Fuentes was \u201cdetaining and deporting Fresno families.\u201d<\/p>\n Fuentes said he will not resign.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are a lot of folks who are misinformed and are being led down a path that\u2019s being pushed by folks within my opponent\u2019s camp, and so no, I do not give a lot of legitimacy to what they\u2019re saying or pushing for,\u201d Fuentes said.<\/p>\n Dillon Savory, executive director of the regional Labor Council, defended Fuentes. His group endorsed him for the city council race.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have now the cancel culture that\u2019s particularly coming out of the left, or maybe a couple small groups that are actually trying to make something negative out of something that\u2019s not,” Savory said. \u201cThey\u2019re trying to really make people into bad people that are not bad people.\u201d<\/p>\n Note: The original story listed Roman Rain Tree as leader of Fresno Resistance. He is not the leader, but aided the group with media relations.<\/p>\n This story was originally published July 6, 2026 at 3:14 PM.<\/p>\n![\"Naindeep](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/deep.JPG\" "\\"deep.JPG\\"")
Naindeep Singh, the Executive Director of the Jakara Movement, Central Unified School Board Trustee and Sikh advocate, is running for Fresno City Council. PROVIDED: NAINDEEP SINGH Group calls for Fuentes\u2019 resignation<\/p>\n