Photo: Alamy
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem joined Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in a predawn raid Tuesday that resulted in the arrests of five immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, including individuals convicted of violent offenses and child endangerment.
The Department of Homeland Security said the operation targeted offenders considered threats to public safety and reflected President Donald Trump’s emphasis on aggressive immigration enforcement.
“President Trump has been clear: If politicians will not put the safety of their citizens first, this administration will,” Noem said in a statement. “Just this morning, DHS took violent offenders off the streets with arrests for assault, DUI, and felony stalking. Our work is only beginning.”
Among those arrested was Carlos Gonzalez-Leon, a Mexican national convicted of assaulting a family member and previously deported. Another, Jose Morales-Rodriguez, also from Mexico, was convicted of aggravated DUI with a child passenger and driving with a revoked license.
Authorities also detained Juan Eduardo Solarzano-Morales, a Mexican national accused of domestic violence, harassment, obstruction, and felony stalking. Two others taken into custody were Victor Manuel Rodriguez-Pantoja, whose immigration history remains unclear, and Ruben Antonio Gonzalez-Querales, a Venezuelan national released into the U.S. under the Biden administration.
The DHS announced Operation Midway Blitz in memory of Katie Abraham, who was killed in Illinois in a drunk driving hit-and-run involving criminal illegal immigrant Julio Cucul-Bol. The ICE initiative focuses on removing criminal illegal immigrants who have settled in Chicago and across Illinois, drawn by Governor J.B. Pritzker’s sanctuary policies that critics say shield offenders and allow them to remain on American streets.
“DHS is launching Operation Midway Blitz in honor of Katie Abraham who was killed in Illinois by a criminal illegal alien who should have never been in our country. This operation will target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens in Chicago,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
“For years, Governor Pritzker and his fellow sanctuary politicians released Tren de Aragua gang members, rapists, kidnappers, and drug traffickers on Chicago’s streets—putting American lives at risk and making Chicago a magnet for criminals. President Trump and Secretary Noem have a clear message: no city is a safe haven for criminal illegal aliens. If you come to our country illegally and break our laws, we will hunt you down, arrest you, deport you, and you will never return,” she added.