IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT

No. 13-60266

Summary Calendar

AMARE ENYEW-KASSA,

Petitioner

v.

ERIC H. HOLDER, JR., U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL,

Respondent

Petition for Review of an Order of the

Board of Immigration Appeals

BIA No. A089 479 023

Before DAVIS, BENAVIDES, and PRADO, Circuit Judges. 

PER CURIAM:*

Amare Enyew-Kassa, a citizen of Ethiopia, petitions for review of a 

decision by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) dismissing his appeal of 

the immigration judge’s (IJ) denial of his application for asylum, withholding 

of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). He has 

abandoned any challenge to the denial of withholding of removal or relief under 

the CAT by failing to brief those issues adequately. See Soadjede v. Ashcroft, 

* Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not 

be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH 

CIR. R. 47.5.4.

United States Court of Appeals

Fifth Circuit

FILED

April 9, 2014

Lyle W. Cayce

Clerk

 

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No. 13-60266

324 F.3d 830, 833 (5th Cir. 2003); Brinkmann v. Dallas Cnty. Deputy Sheriff 

Abner, 813 F.2d 744, 748 (5th Cir. 1987). We review the determination of an 

alien’s eligibility for asylum for substantial evidence. Zhang v. Gonzales, 432 

F.3d 339, 344-45 (5th Cir. 2005). 

In his written declaration, Enyew-Kassa asserted that he feared 

persecution upon return to Ethiopia, explaining that (1) he joined CUD, a

political party opposed to the government, in November 2004; (2) he was 

arrested and tortured in March, May, and June of 2005, with the longest 

detention being three weeks; and (3) his father was shot and killed in 

November 2005. During his hearing, Enyew-Kassa declared that he last left 

Ethiopia on July 23, 2005. He initially testified that his father was killed in 

November 2005. Later, however, Enyew-Kassa stated that his father was 

killed in December 2005, and when asked again to provide the correct date of 

his father’s death, he stated that his father was killed in November 2004, but 

immediately corrected the date to November 2005. Additionally, he asserted 

that he was in prison when he learned of his father’s death and that upon his 

release, he searched his mother’s house for proof that his father’s death was 

politically motivated. Enyew-Kassa further declared that he joined CUD in 

December 2004, motivated, in part, by his father’s death. He then testified 

that he officially joined CUD in 2005 during election time, but then stated that 

he did not officially join CUD and was involved only in supporting activities. 

In light of the inconsistent and often vague testimony, the IJ did not err 

by concluding that Enyew-Kassa was not a credible witness. See Wang v. 

Holder, 569 F.3d 531, 537-38 (5th Cir. 2009); 8 U.S.C. § 1158(b)(1)(B)(iii). 

Substantial evidence supports the denial of his application for asylum. See 

Wang, 569 F.3d at 536-37; Zhang, 432 F.3d at 344-45. Accordingly, EnyewKassa’s petition for review is DENIED.

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