HOUSTON, Texas — A multi-agency local, state, and federal law enforcement task force arrested more than 500 criminal aliens during a week-long series of targeted raids. The arrests included seven documented gang members, ICE officials said.
A Houston Field Office spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) said the multi-agency task force hit the Houston-area streets between February 23 and March 3 “to bolster public safety, national security, and border security.”
The raids, carried out by law enforcement authorities from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Diplomatic Security Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, and several other state and local law enforcement agencies, led to the arrest of 646 illegal aliens, according to the statement released on Monday afternoon. Included in the arrests were 543 criminal aliens and seven documented gang members.
ICE officials say those arrested were charged or convicted of crimes. Those include:
- 140 criminal aliens charged or convicted of an aggravated felony or other violent offense such as homicide, aggravated assault, or domestic violence.
- 34 criminal aliens charged or convicted of a sex offense or child sex offense such as aggravated sexual assault of a minor, possession of child pornography, or rape.
- 38 criminal aliens convicted of illegal firearms offenses such as unlawful carrying of a firearm, alien in possession of a firearm and aggravated assault with a firearm.
- 52 criminal aliens charged or convicted of illicit narcotics offenses such as drug trafficking, or possession of a controlled substance.
- 51 criminal aliens charged or convicted of property crimes such as burglary or theft.
- 93 criminal aliens charged or convicted of driving while intoxicated.
The spokesman stated that the task force executed 71 criminal arrest warrants leading to the apprehensions.
“In recent years, some of the world’s most dangerous fugitives, transnational gang members and criminal aliens have taken advantage of the crisis at our nation’s southern border to illegally enter the U.S.,” said ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Houston Field Office Director Bret Bradford. “After illegally entering the country, many of these criminal aliens have gone on to commit violent crime(s) and reign terror on law-abiding residents. Fueled by our unwavering commitment to protect the public from harm and united in our determination to restore integrity to our nation’s system of laws, ICE and our law enforcement partners in Southeast Texas have banded together to remove these dangerous criminal aliens from our local communities and put an end to the lawlessness that they spread.”
“In just one week working alongside our counterparts from federal, state and local law enforcement, ICE HSI special agents successfully executed 71 criminal arrest warrants and made 554 administrative arrests that included illegally present human smugglers, gang members, human traffickers, child sex offenders, drug traffickers and weapons traffickers,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Houston Special Agent in Charge Chad Plantz. “These collective efforts have made our local communities significantly safer and strengthened our national security and border security. As a result, we’ve sent a resounding message to transnational criminal organizations everywhere that the law enforcement community in the Texas Gulf Coast is more united than ever and will not rest until we’ve eradicated these criminal elements from the country.”
The Houston-area raids are part of the ongoing operations launched following the inauguration of President Donald Trump in January. Last week, ICE Homeland Security Investigations carried out a workplace enforcement operation in Spring, Texas, a Houston suburb, Breitbart Texas reported. That operation led to the arrest of 20 illegal aliens working without proper documentation.
In February, Breitbart Texas reported on a ICE raid in Texas largest migrant colony, Colony Ridge. The development is located about 45 minutes north of Houston. One of the raids led to the arrest of a three-time deported Salvadoran man wanted on child sex-assault warrants. Another landed a seven-time deported MS-13 gang member.
A week before this operation began, ICE agents arrested three illegal aliens who were allegedly in possession of 344 pounds of methamphetamine in the Colony Ridge area, Breitbart reported.
Bob Price is the Breitbart Texas-Border team’s associate editor and senior news contributor. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday morning talk show. He also serves as president of Blue Wonder Gun Care Products.
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