Ian Roberts plans to submit a letter of resignation as superintendent of the Des Moines school district today, Alfredo Parrish, Roberts’ attorney, said during a news conference early this afternoon.

The resignation comes on the heels of Roberts’ arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Friday and the Des Moines school board’s vote on Monday, placing Roberts on unpaid administrative leave.

Roberts, a native of the South American country Guyana, was hired as superintendent by the Des Moines board in July 2023. Des Moines school officials have said background checks were conducted on Roberts before he was hired. The checks were done by consulting firms who assisted the district in the superintendent’s search; the state of Iowa, which issued him a license to be a school administrator in Iowa; and the district, officials have said.

The Department of Justice Civil Rights Division sent a letter to the school district saying it is launching an investigation into the district’s employment practices, KCCI reports.

Roberts entered the U.S. in 1999 on a student visa, according to an ICE news release. At that time, Roberts was attending St. John’s University, located in Jamaica, N.Y., according to his LinkedIn profile.

Roberts, 54, is accused of being in the United States illegally and not complying with an order of removal issued in May 2024.

On Monday, Parrish said his firm has filed a motion to stay in the Omaha Immigration Court. The motion is a request to temporarily stop Roberts from being deported. Parrish also said his firm will file a request asking that Roberts’ immigration case be reopened.

An attorney Roberts had hired in Texas sent Parrish a letter indicating that Roberts’ case “was resolved successfully” Parrish said. Parrish said his staff is going through documents, many of which are difficult to obtain, to determine an accurate timeline of events related to Roberts’ immigration case.

During the news conference, Parrish responded to a question about the loaded gun found in Roberts’ vehicle when he was arrested by saying that Roberts had been in the military in Guyana.

In the military operations “he led the most difficult raids on the biggest criminals in Guyana,” Parrish said. On some occasions, Roberts was targeted by drug cartels, Parrish said. “That’s about as far as I can comment,” he said.

The Des Moines school board is expected to meet later today.

Related article: Des Moines board places Roberts on unpaid leave