Deportation officers arrest 145 in Texas during seven-day enforcement action

Deportation officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested 145 individuals in South and Central Texas during a seven-day enforcement action, which ended Feb. 16.

Of the 145 arrested, 86 had criminal convictions. Thirty-nine were arrested because of previous immigration encounters, four of which have pending criminal charges. Twenty had no prior immigration history or encounters, and one has pending criminal charges.

Of the individuals arrested, 135 were men and 10 were women. They range in age from 18 to 62 years old. The aliens arrested during the enforcement action were from a variety of places, including 128 from Mexico, seven from Guatemala, seven from Honduras, one from El Salvador, one from Peru and one from Jordan.

Officers made 45 arrests in Austin, 41 in San Antonio, 37 in Rio Grande Valley, 15 in Laredo and seven in Waco.

“The results of this operation are a clear indication of ICE’s commitment regarding the role we play in keeping our communities safe by locating, arresting and ultimately removing at-large criminal aliens who pose a threat to public safety, and other immigration fugitives,” Daniel Bible, field office director for ERO in San Antonio, said.

All of the targets in the operation were amenable to arrest and removal under the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act, ICE said. ICE officers evaluate aliens on a case-by-case basis, and, when appropriate, arrest the individuals.

“ICE’s leadership has made clear that ICE will no longer exempt classes or categories of removable aliens from potential enforcement,” Bible said. “All of those in violation of the immigration laws may be subject to immigration arrest, detention and – if found removable by final order – removal from the United States. By effecting these immigration enforcement operations, the dedicated men and women of ICE help keep our communities safe.”