In a national sting operation that lasted through August and September, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested 175 illegal aliens, all of whom had multiple DUI offenses and some who are being accused of murder by vehicle.
The agency said the nationwide law enforcement effort began on Aug. 20 and ended on Sept. 30, according to an Oct. 19 press release. In addition to DUI convictions, agents arrested illegal immigrants with criminal histories that include assault, child cruelty, domestic violence, fraud, homicide by vehicle, hit-and-run, and larceny.
“More than 11,000 people in the U.S. died as a result of crashes involving a drunk driver in 2020,” said Corey A. Price, executive associate director of ICE’s enforcement and removal operations (ERO).
“An enforcement operation focusing on individuals who have previously been convicted of DUI—some resulting in death or serious bodily harm—is vitally important to public safety,” Price added. “ERO continues to remove unlawfully present individuals who are negatively affecting the safety of our communities.”
@ICEgovERO arrests 175 during national operation targeting noncitizens convicted of DUI and related criminal convictions for serious bodily injury, death, hit and run or property damage. Read more: https://t.co/VgRllkRwBj pic.twitter.com/M4gyxQ0bPY
— ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (@ICEgovERO) October 19, 2022
Among those arrested were nationals of Mexico and El Salvador, ICE said. The individuals were taken into custody in a number of states, including sanctuary states such as New York and California.
One such illegal alien, a 40-year-old man from Mexico, was arrested for first-degree homicide in Norcross, Georgia. The individual remains in ICE custody pending prosecution and deportation proceedings.
Another example involved a 35-year-old Salvadoran national who has been convicted of second-degree vehicular manslaughter. He was arrested in Bellport, New York.
ICE is in charge of enforcing immigration law in the U.S. interior, and ERO is an arm of the agency.
Record-Low Numbers
The agency’s deportations and arrests have hit record lows under the administration of President Joe Biden, which narrowed ICE’s criteria for enforcement in 2021. The implementation of that guidance coincided with a sharp drop in arrests and deportations.
In fiscal year 2021, during which Biden took office, ICE conducted 74,082 arrests, including 1,506 illegal aliens with homicide-related offenses and 12,025 with aggravated felony convictions. That fiscal year, only 59,011 illegal immigrants were deported.
That is down dramatically in comparison to fiscal year 2020, which was under the administration of President Donald Trump, when ICE conducted 103,603 arrests and removed 185,884 illegal immigrants, according to a report (pdf). The agency noted that in 2020, almost one-third fewer were arrested and deported than the previous year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In fiscal year 2019, the last full year that did not include the COVID-19 pandemic, ICE arrested 143,099 illegal immigrants and deported more than 267,000 individuals.
As the nation faces record-breaking numbers of illegal aliens at the southern border, Tom Homan, who served as acting director of ICE during the Trump administration, previously told The Epoch Times that the border crisis is “by design,” claiming it “was created on purpose.”
The Biden administration could easily stem the flow of people to the southern border, but doesn’t want to, Homan alleged. “They know how to fix this, but they don’t want to fix it,” he added.