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April 14, 2014Tyler, TX, United StatesEnforcement and Removal

ICE arrests 40 criminal aliens in east Texas during 3-day operation

ICE arrests 40 criminal aliens in east Texas during 3-day operation ICE arrests 40 criminal aliens in east Texas during 3-day operation ICE arrests 40 criminal aliens in east Texas during 3-day operation ICE arrests 40 criminal aliens in east Texas during 3-day operation

TYLER, Texas — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested 40 convicted criminal aliens during a three-day operation which concluded Saturday.

The operation was conducted by ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Fugitive Operations Teams in eight east Texas cities as part of the agency's commitment to prioritize the removal of criminal aliens and egregious immigration violators. These arrests occurred in the following Texas cities: Tyler (14), Longview (12), Rusk (6), Canton (2), Henderson (2), Marshal (2), Kilgore (1) and White Oak (1). They range in age from 21 to 60 years old.

Of the individuals taken into custody, all were criminal aliens whose convictions include: driving while intoxicated (DWI) and felony DWI (three or more convictions), assault with bodily injury, burglary, theft, injury to a child, failure to identify, and others. The group also included four previously deported aliens. Anyone who re-enters the United States after having been deported commits a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison, if convicted.

Following are four examples of criminal aliens arrested by ERO fugitive operations officers during this east Texas operation (in accordance with Department of Homeland Security privacy policies, names are not included):

  • A 37-year-old man from Mexico was arrested April 10 in Canton, Texas. He had been convicted and sentenced multiple times between 1999 and 2013 for various crimes, including: failure to ID, assault causing bodily injury, DWI and felony DWI, and theft of property. As an illegal criminal alien, he will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of his immigration proceedings.
  • A 42-year-old woman from Mexico was arrested in Tyler, Texas, April 11. She was convicted in December 2010 of manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance and sentenced to 10 years of incarceration (suspended) and 10 years of probation. As an illegal criminal alien, she will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of her immigration proceedings.
  • A 31-year-old man from Mexico was arrested April 11 in Tyler, Texas. He had been convicted and sentenced multiple times between 2006 and 2014 for various crimes, including: assault causing bodily injury, illegally entering the United States, and DWI. He has been deported twice. He will remain in ICE custody pending potential federal prosecution for illegal re-entry.
  • A 31-year-old man from Mexico was arrested April 11 in Longview, Texas. He has multiple convictions, including: hindering the apprehension/prosecution of a known felon (sex offender), DWI (twice), and driving while license invalid. As an illegal criminal alien, he will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of his immigration proceedings.
"These ICE operations target criminal aliens who prey upon and threaten our local communities," said Thomas P. Giles, field office director for ICE ERO Dallas. "Ultimately, these operations help improve public safety by removing these criminals from our streets and from our country." Giles oversees 128 counties in north Texas and the state of Oklahoma.

All of the 37 men and three women arrested during this operation were from Mexico.

The following law enforcement agencies assisted ERO with this operation: Smith County Sheriff's Office, and the Texas police departments of Gladewater, Kilgore, Longview, Tyler and White Oak.

In fiscal year 2013, ICE conducted 368,644 removals nationwide. Eighty-two percent of individuals removed from the interior of the United States had previously been convicted of a criminal offense.

ICE is focused on smart, effective immigration enforcement that targets serious criminal aliens who present the greatest risk to the security of our communities, such as those charged with or convicted of homicide, rape, robbery, kidnapping, major drug offenses and threats to national security. ICE also prioritizes the arrest and removal of immigration fugitives or criminal aliens who have been previously deported and illegally re-entered the country.

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