Case Name: Lassane SIMPORE, Petitioner, v. Eric H. HOLDER, Jr., United States Attorney General, Respondent
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2012-02-22
Citations: 462 F. App'x 130
Docket Number: No. 10-3540-ag
Parties: Lassane SIMPORE, Petitioner, v. Eric H. HOLDER, Jr., United States Attorney General, Respondent.
Judges: PRESENT: JON O. NEWMAN, ROBERT A. KATZMANN, and SUSAN L. CARNEY, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 462
Pages: 130–131

Head Matter:
Lassane SIMPORE, Petitioner, v. Eric H. HOLDER, Jr., United States Attorney General, Respondent.
No. 10-3540-ag.
United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.
Feb. 22, 2012.
Gary J. Yerman, New York, N.Y., for Petitioner.
Tony West, Assistant Attorney General; Ernesto H. Molina, Jr., Assistant Director; Joanna L. Watson, Trial Attorney, Office of Immigration Litigation, Civil Division, United States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., for Respondent.
PRESENT: JON O. NEWMAN, ROBERT A. KATZMANN, and SUSAN L. CARNEY, Circuit Judges.

Opinion:
SUMMARY ORDER
Petitioner Lassane Simpore, a native and citizen of Burkina Faso, seeks review of an August 6, 2010 order of the BIA, affirming the October 29, 2008 decision of Immigration Judge ("IJ") Robert D. Weis-el, which denied his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture ("CAT"). In re Lassane Simpore, No. [ AXXX XXX XXX ] (B.I.A. Aug. 6, 2010), aff'g No. [ AXXX XXX XXX ] (Immig. Ct. N.Y. City Oct. 29, 2008). We assume the parties' familiarity with the underlying facts and procedural history of the case.
Under the circumstances of this case, we have reviewed both the IJ's and the BIA's opinions "for the sake of completeness." Zaman v. Mukasey, 514 F.3d 233, 237 (2d Cir.2008). The applicable standards of review are well-established. See 8 U.S.C. § 1252(b)(4)(B); Yanqin Weng v. Holder, 562 F.3d 510, 513 (2d Cir.2009).
Having reviewed the IJ's and the BIA's decisions, we conclude that substantial evidence supports the determination that Simpore failed to meet his burden of establishing a well-founded fear of future persecution based on a protected ground. As noted by the IJ, it was "reasonable to expect the Burkina Faso military to detain [Simpore] for questioning, regarding involvement in the unauthorized confiscation of vehicles." See Long v. Holder, 620 F.3d 162, 166 (2d Cir.2010) ("As a rule, the enforcement of generally applicable law cannot be said to be on account of the offender's political opinion, even if the offender objects to the law."). Moreover, while the IJ found Simpore to be credible, other than Simpore's testimony that he had "heard" that some individuals were missing or in a military prison, there was no evidence that those who had been arrested in connection with the alleged illegal activity were ever persecuted.
As to the specific arguments raised by Simpore on appeal — (1) that the IJ failed to consider his fear of extended detention and (2) that he was persecuted on account of an imputed political opinion — we decline to consider these arguments since they were never raised before the BIA. See Karaj v. Gonzales, 462 F.3d 113, 121 (2d Cir.2006) (noting that an alien appealing an IJ's decision to the BIA has an "obligation to explain why the IJ's decision was wrong"); Foster v. INS, 376 F.3d 75, 78 (2d Cir.2004) ("To preserve a claim, we require '[pletitioner to raise issues to the BIA in order to preserve them for judicial review.' ") (emphasis in original).
Similarly, Simpore's eonclusory assertion that the evidence in the record supports his claim for CAT relief is insufficient to raise the issue in this Court. Yueqing Zhang v. Gonzales, 426 F.3d 540, 541 n. 1, 545 n. 7 (2d Cir.2005).
For the foregoing reasons, the petition for review is DENIED.