Photo: Alamy
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Monday that federal agents have arrested more than 480,000 immigrants in the country illegally over the past nine months, with about 70 percent facing criminal charges or prior convictions.
Speaking in Bradenton, Florida, Noem said the arrests are from a strong push by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to focus on violent offenders and repeat criminals. She announced the figures during a press conference and in an accompanying Department of Homeland Security statement.
“President Trump unleashed ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] to target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens. Some of the criminals arrested include illegal aliens convicted of incest with a minor, homicide, sexual assault of a minor, and domestic violence,” Noem said in the release.
She added that “70% of ICE arrests are of illegal aliens convicted or charged with a crime in the U.S. This statistic doesn’t even include foreign fugitives, illegal aliens convicted of crimes in other countries, gang members, and suspected terrorists.”
Noem highlighted several South and Central Florida cases that she described as examples of ICE’s renewed enforcement focus.
“We are not going to let these individuals terrorize our streets anymore, and we’re not going to let them make victims out of families that live in this country,” Noem said at the event.
President Donald Trump also addressed arrests by the FBI in a Monday post on Truth Social.
“The FBI, under my Administration, is doing an incredible job. Since January 20th, more than 28,000 Violent Criminals have been arrested (RECORD BREAKING!), with over 6,000 illegal weapons seized, more than 1,700 child predators and 300 human traffickers taken off the streets, 5,000 innocent children rescued, 2,000 Criminal Enterprises disrupted, 1,900 kilos of Fentanyl (Enough to kill 125 Million people!) taken out — HISTORIC RESULTS,” he wrote.
“We are bringing LAW AND ORDER back to America. Kash, Dan, Andrew, and the men and women of the FBI, are doing a tremendous job, MAKING AMERICA SAFE AGAIN!” the president continued.