Federal immigration officials say they’ve arrested 114 foreign nationals in the New York area, 99 of them in the city, during an 11-day enforcement sweep this month.
U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officials arrested 104 men and 10 women in a sweep federal officials say targeted immigrants with criminal records — including a Mexican national convicted of manslaughter, and an Ecuadoran citizen convicted of rape.
ICE officials wouldn’t say exactly where those arrested were scooped up, or if they were nabbed in home raids, or at city courthouses — a practice blasted by city lawmakers and legal aid groups.
Nor would they release the names of the people arrested — even though many have pending criminal cases or will face prosecution for reentering the country illegally.
According to an ICE statement, 82 of those arrested have convictions on their records, while 15 had pending charges and 37 were issued final orders for removal. Of those with convictions, 12 were guilty of drug-dealing, and five were guilty of sex-related offenses, ICE officials said.
“Regardless of politics, ICE will be diligent in its responsibility to find those who come to the United States to prey upon our communities and ultimately return them to their home countries,” said Thomas Decker, ICE’s field office director for enforcement and removal operations in New York.
Those detained by ICE are from 35 different countries, including 21 from Mexico, 16 from Ecuador and 11 from the Dominican Republic.
Natalia Aristizabal, of the immigration advocacy group Make the Road, blasted the sweep, calling it an “absolutely inhumane” action by the Trump administration, which she likened to a “war tactic.”
“Their ultimate goal is not only to destroy the lives of those people they’re picking up, but to intimidate the broader immigrant community,” she said.
The sweep came amid a promised crackdown by President Trump on undocumented immigrants.
Immigration arrests rose nearly 40% during Trump’s first 100 days in office — with 41,300 people arrested compared to 30,000 last year.
ICE maintained in May that nearly 75% of those arrested were convicted criminals, but the data showed the biggest spike in arrests involved those who had broken no laws.
The city cooperates with requests from federal immigration authorities when someone in custody has committed a violent or serious felony over the past five years, or is on a terrorist watch list, said Rosemary Boeglin, a spokeswoman with the mayor’s office of immigrant affairs.
“While ICE has authority to conduct enforcement operations in public spaces in New York City, the mayor's office is committed to ensuring immigrant New Yorkers know their rights and resources,” Boeglin said.
If you have immigration questions or would like to speak with a lawyer, call 311 and say "Action NYC.”
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