U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials say more than 100 illegal immigrants -- including dozens with criminal convictions -- have been arrested in a series of raids across several Texas cities. ICE officials say during seven days of sweeps, officers with its Enforcement and Removal Operations unit arrested 145 illegal immigrants, including 86 who had criminal convictions. Of those 145 people arrested, 61 had been previously deported, according to ICE.
Arrests include man previously deported for indecency with a child
The sweeps, which ended on Feb.14, included the arrest of a 42-year-old man who had been placed on probation and deported after being convicted in 2011 of indecency with a child.
The man, who has not been named, after being arrested in Harlingen, Texas, is now in the custody of U.S. Marshals while he faces federal charges for illegally re-entering the United States after having been deported, as well as the outcome of the original child indecency case.
Also arrested was another illegal immigrant who had been sentenced to serve 15 months in prison after a DUI conviction last fall. It’s not clear why the 42-year-old man -- who has not been named -- was not in prison serving his sentence, but he’s now in ICE custody after being taken into custody in San Antonio. The man has also served time in federal prison on an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon conviction.
“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, the San Antonio field office director for the ERO, said in a statement.
Of the 145 people arrested, 135 were men and ten were women. Their ages range from 18 to 62 years old. All but one were from Mexico or South American countries, with the lone exception being a citizen of Jordan.
Illegal immigrant wanted for murder in Mexico arrested
In a separate matter, an illegal immigrant who had been deported from the U.S.
six times and was wanted for Murder In Mexico has been arrested and deported again.
ICE officials say Gonzalo “El Chano” Juarez-Limon was turned over to Mexican authorities at the international boundary on top of El Paso’s Stanton International Bridge on Feb. 20. According to the arrest warrant issued in Mexico, the 48-year-old Juarez-Limon was wanted for a murder that took place in 1996.
