United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________ No. 18-2331 ___________________________ Shuli Marambo lllllllllllllllllllllPetitioner v. William P. Barr, Attorney General of the United States lllllllllllllllllllllRespondent ____________ Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals ____________ Submitted: March 12, 2019 Filed: July 26, 2019 ____________ Before SHEPHERD, ARNOLD, and KOBES, Circuit Judges. ____________ SHEPHERD, Circuit Judge. Shuli Marambo, a native and citizen of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), petitions for review of an order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) upholding the decision of an immigration judge (IJ) concluding that Marambo was removable; denying his applications for adjustment of status, asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT); and ordering removal to the DRC. Having jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252, we deny the petition. After fleeing the DRC due to an ongoing war, Marambo was admitted to the United States in 2007 as a refugee, settling with family in Minnesota. In 2013, Marambo pled guilty to two counts of second-degree burglary, in violation of Minn. Stat. § 609.582. In 2014, while he was still serving probation related to his burglary convictions, he was arrested and charged with one count of being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm, in violation of Minn. Stat. § 624.713. He was subsequently found guilty, his probation for the burglary offenses was revoked, and he was sentenced to a total term of imprisonment of 60 months. Based on Marambo’s convictions, the Department of Homeland Security charged Marambo with being removable pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(ii), as an alien “convicted of two or more crimes involving moral turpitude”; 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii), as “an alien convicted of an aggravated felony”; and 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(C), as an alien convicted of an offense for unlawfully possessing a firearm. Marambo conceded removability based on two convictions for crimes involving moral turpitude, but challenged the other two bases for removal. Marambo also filed an application for adjustment of status, asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under CAT. After a hearing during which the IJ heard testimony from Marambo, his cousin, and his uncle, the IJ determined that Marambo was removable and denied his various requests for relief. The IJ first noted that Marambo had conceded removability based on his convictions for crimes involving moral turpitude before concluding that, while Marambo was not removable pursuant to § 1227(a)(2)(C) for unlawful possession of a firearm, he was additionally removable pursuant to § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii) because his burglary convictions qualified as aggravated felonies. The IJ then determined that Marambo was not eligible for withholding of removal because his conviction for -2- unlawful possession of a firearm was a “particularly serious crime” under 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3)(B)(ii) and was thus a disqualifying offense. The IJ also denied Marambo’s request for relief under CAT, concluding that, despite the credibility of Marambo and his family members, Marambo failed to show that he would more likely than not be tortured if he returned ...
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