Why was Virginia Basora-Gonzalez detained? White House shares Ghibli-style meme on convicted fentanyl dealer's arrest

On March 12, 2025, Virginia Basora-Gonzalez was arrested in Philadelphia for illegally entering the United States. Gonzalez is a 36-year-old from the Dominican Republic. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) teamed up with the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for the operation.

ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, Philadelphia, acting Field Office Director Brian McShane stated on the organization's official website:

"The apprehension of Virginia Basora-Gonzalez demonstrates our commitment to protecting our communities from criminal aliens who engage in serious illegal activities that pose a threat to public safety."

Basora-Gonzalez had a prior conviction for attempting to sell fentanyl, which led to her deportation earlier. Authorities took her into custody when she reentered the country illegally, .

White House attaches Studio Ghibli-style meme with Virginia Basora-Gonzalez's image

The White House first shared an X post with the news of Gonzalez on March 18. The post was captioned:

"Virginia Basora-Gonzalez, a previously deported alien felon convicted of fentanyl trafficking, was arrested by @ICEgov in Philadelphia after illegally reentering the U.S. She wept when taken into custody."

After the release of ChatGPT's new feature, which changes images into Studio Ghibli-style artwork, the White House also participated in the meme by sharing Virginia Basora-Gonzalez's photo.

The White House joining this popular trend has garnered people’s attention. The new tool has become popular, with people on different platforms changing regular photos into Studio Ghibli-style art.

The feature rolled out on March 25, 2025, and turns photos into Studio Ghibli-style artwork, inspired by the Japanese animation studio, Studio Ghibli, based in Koganei, Tokyo.

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, joins the Studio Ghibli meme wave

After the launch, the CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, also joined the meme by changing his profile picture on X. He posted on the platform to say:

"changed my pfp but maybe someone will make me a better one"

Altman also shared the features and his experience of the tool saying:

"it's an incredible technology/product. i remember seeing some of the first images come out of this model and having a hard time they were really made by AI."

He added:

"this represents a new high-water mark for us in allowing creative freedom. people are going to create some really amazing stuff and some stuff that may offend people; what we'd like to aim for is that the tool doesn't create offensive stuff unless you want it to, in which case within reason it does."

As of March 27, 2025, Virginia Basora-Gonzalez was in federal custody after her arrest earlier this month. Her case is being handled in Eastern Pennsylvania, where she faces charges for returning to the U.S. after being deported.

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