5-Day ICE Sweep in Orange County

H.G. Reza writes in the LA Times:

Federal agents arrested 175 people during a five-day sweep in Orange County that included immigrants convicted of crimes or who had been ordered deported but remained in the United States, officials said Friday.

Jim Hayes, an official with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Los Angeles, said 100 of those arrested in the crackdown, which began Monday, have been returned to their native countries. The operation by special immigration enforcement teams was the largest of its kind in Orange County, according to an agency statement. The Orange County team became operational June 1. Among the illegal immigrants it arrested were fugitives who had been ordered deported and those with criminal records. Some immigrants were turned in by the public, or in one case by family members, Hayes said.

Agents also relied on a national database with names of fugitive illegal immigrants who have ignored deportation orders. Immigration officials said 632,189 people are in this category, and authorities hope to make a dent in this number through the 61 enforcement teams operating nationwide. Fourteen more teams are expected to be operational by the end of the year. Click here for the rest of the story.

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