Flim-Flam Guyanese Dupes Woke Des Moines School Board

Illegal alien Ian Roberts' story has so many variations that investigators are still sorting through his background and trying to make sense of it all. Regardless of what the final chapter may reveal about former Des Moines Public School (DMPS) Superintendent Roberts' trail of lies and deceits, the subplot involves the community's outpouring of support for an illegal alien who fled from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, drove off in a school-subsidized vehicle that contained a concealed illegal loaded handgun, a hunting knife, $3,000 in cash, and cowered in the bushes until apprehended.

Outrage is the proper sentiment for Des Moines residents, but it should not be directed at immigration enforcement officers. The scandal is that Roberts hoodwinked the school board, which put in place an unqualified individual to lead the schools' teachers, serve as a role model for unsuspecting students, and paid him $300,000 to pull the wool over their eyes.

Instead, the gullible, uninformed community gathered by the hundreds to denounce ICE and demand Roberts be released from ICE custody. Politicians and protesters brushed aside his unlawful presence, his flight from law enforcement, and a possible Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives charge related to the loaded firearm hidden in the school's car. The agency has carried out a federal search warrant at Roberts' home.

School officials' colossal naïveté is breathtaking. Matt Smith, now interim superintendent, quoted Roberts' formula for moving forward—hardly the person to cite in these embarrassing circumstances. Smith expressed how "devastated" the district is, but "in the words of Dr. Roberts, 'if you paddle together, you will survive the tide. If you paddle alone, you will likely drown.' As we learn more, we chose to paddle together." In a post on Facebook, Iowa Rep. Larry McBurney (D) said he was "furious" about Roberts' arrest: "This is not only unacceptable, it is an outright disgrace." McBurney held President Donald Trump responsible and demanded immediate federal intervention. Roberts’ hullabaloo has consequences that could affect the 2026 U.S. Senate race to replace retiring Sen. Joni Ernst (R). The DMPS board chair, Jackie Norris, a former Chief of Staff to First Lady Michelle Obama and a current Democratic candidate, called for Iowans to rally around Roberts with "radical empathy," whatever that means.

While the school board obsesses over Roberts' fate and disregards his crimes—immigration-related and otherwise—it should be concerned about possible criminal charges brought against it. Hiring an illegal alien is a crime, and the responsibility lies with the employer to verify immigration status. DMPS maintains that a third party conducted a comprehensive background check on Roberts and said that he completed the I-9 employment eligibility verification form and submitted the required documentation. Roberts must have lied on his I-9 and probably presented easily obtained falsified documents. The paperwork could have been verified through a phone call, which DMPS chose not to make. Yet another potential headache for DMPS: Roberts was a DEI hire that the district boasted about. Des Moines Public Schools is under investigation by the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division regarding the district's employment practices. In a September 30 letter to the district, the Department of Justice says it is basing its investigation on "information that DMPS may be engaged in employment practices that discriminate against employees, job applicants, and training program participants based on race, color, and national origin in violation of Title VII."

Roberts' brazen lies: Was he born in Brooklyn in 1978, or was it Guyana in 1970, or was it in 1973 as his athletic entry forms for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games indicated? While in Washington, D.C., Roberts maintained that he was honored with the Principal of the Year award, even though no evidence could be found that such an award ever existed. He further claimed to have earned a doctorate from Morgan State University and studied at MIT's Sloan School of Management, although neither has a record that he attended or participated in any of their official programs. Roberts is registered to vote in Maryland; if he cast a ballot, that would represent voter fraud, another felony. Roberts' bottomless scams go on and on.

Federal agents arrested Roberts on Sept. 26, 15 months after an immigration judge ordered his removal in May 2024, a year after the Des Moines School Board hired Roberts in 2023. So many red flags ignored, so many stop signs blown through—the board hired an incompetent charlatan who claimed to have honorifics from universities he never attended, ignored state and federal requirements, and failed to follow up or investigate Roberts' Pennsylvania gun charges. Bowing to the inevitable, Roberts resigned his illegally obtained job on September 30 and hired a lawyer to fight his inevitable deportation back to Guyana.

Meanwhile, the entire school board should be forced to immediately and publicly resign in disgrace and admit that its multiple failures harmed the children and their parents, both of whom deserve professional educators at the helm, not a flim-flam man.

Joe Guzzardi is an Institute for Sound Public Policy analyst. Contact him at jguzzardi@ifspp.org