Man Being Deported After Transit Officer Asked About Status

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  - A light-rail passenger seen in a video being questioned by a Minneapolis Metro Transit Police officer about his immigration status is now in deportation proceedings.

Police Chief John Harrington said after the video of the May 14 incident was posted on Facebook by another passenger that it is not his department's policy to question riders about their immigration status. In another statement Saturday, he said his agency is ``working to reestablish the trust that was broken by this isolated incident.''

Reports say that 23-year-old Ariel Vences-Lopez was arrested for fare evasion and giving a false name on May 14. But Harrington said the Mexican national's immigration status was never referenced in his office's police reports.

Harrington said the officer who questioned Vences-Lopez in the video is no longer with the department.