US immigration authorities made nearly 1,200 arrests in a single day, with approximately half of those detained lacking prior criminal records, a Trump administration official revealed.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement made 1,179 arrests on Sunday, more than the 956 arrests the agency reported on social media on Sunday night. However, just 613 of those total arrests, or about 52%, were classified as “criminal arrests.” The remaining individuals seem to be either nonviolent criminals or those who have only crossed the border.
The official claimed that two gang members were among the eight “Worst Criminals Arrested” when those arrests were broken down. Nevertheless, at least 566 individuals who were arrested on Sunday were only detained because they lacked the legal right to be in the United States and had not committed any crimes.
Being undocumented is a civil violation rather than a criminal offense. However, it is illegal for an undocumented immigrant who has been deported to return to the United States without authorization. Of the 566, it is unknown how many, if any, had entered the nation illegally twice.
On Sunday, Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar, said that he knew of “at least a few” collateral arrests, which are the dimensions of individuals present during the raids but who do not have criminal histories. According to him, these would probably happen again as immigration enforcement operations intensify nationwide.
“Our goal is to capture as many criminals as we can,” Homan stated. “They pose a threat to public safety, so they’re coming here with someone else who isn’t authorized.”
According to the latest ICE arrests data, there were 853 “detainers lodged,” people who were arrested on other criminal charges Sunday, but ICE may have probable cause to believe they could be up for deportation.
With a detainer request, ICE requests that a local government detain an undocumented immigrant who has previously been arrested for another offense. ICE may have good reason to suspect that the migrant may face deportation. Requests for detainers are not handled by so-called sanctuary cities.
