More than 400 illegal immigrants were arrested during a week-long immigration enforcement operation in central Florida last week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said on Sept. 30.
ICE said that the operation, carried out between Sept. 22 and Sept. 26, targeted illegal immigrants with “outstanding criminal warrants” and those who are subject to deportation.
“Many of these individuals illegally remained in Florida and have gone on to wreak havoc in our local neighborhoods,” ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Miami Field Office Director Garrett Ripa said in a statement.
ICE said that all the detainees will be subject to removal proceedings in accordance with federal immigration law.
The operation was led by ICE Miami in coordination with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and multiple local law enforcement agencies, including the Florida Highway Patrol and the Florida National Guard, according to the agency.
Florida is leading nationwide in what are called 287(g) partnerships, with 327 agreements currently in place, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The agreements allow local law enforcement agencies to carry out certain immigration duties, including identifying and processing removable illegal immigrants who face criminal charges.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin praised the operation in central Florida, noting that the detainees included individuals convicted of such criminal offenses as “lewd and lascivious behavior, battery, domestic violence, prostitution, vehicle theft, hit and run, and driving under the influence.”
“This was another successful operation to arrest the worst of the worst with our Florida state and local partners and can serve as a blueprint nationwide,” McLaughlin said, calling on other states to follow suit.
The Trump administration has ramped up efforts to arrest and deport illegal immigrants across the country.
The DHS said on Sept. 23 that federal immigration authorities have removed more than 2 million illegal immigrants since President Donald Trump took office.
That figure includes an estimated 1.6 million illegal immigrants who voluntarily self-deported and more than 400,000 who were removed, according to the department.
After taking office on Jan. 20, Trump signed an executive order aimed at securing the United States’ borders, directing his administration to build barriers at the border, deter and prevent the entry of illegal immigrants, remove “promptly all aliens who enter or remain in violation of federal law,” and pursue criminal charges “against illegal aliens who violate the immigration laws.”
The order said the United States has seen a “large-scale invasion at an unprecedented level” over the past four years, as millions of illegal immigrants have entered the country, including potential terrorists, foreign spies, members of cartels, and other hostile actors with malicious intent.
Stuart Liess contributed to this report.
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