ICE Arrests Dozens On Long Island In Latest Sweep

More than three dozen people on Long Island were arrested in the latest roundup by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, who arrested 225 people in the New York metropolitan area over the last week.

ICE officers made the arrests across New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley over a six-day period that started on Monday, April 9. According to ICE, 16 people in Nassau and 21 people in Suffolk were arrested. All of the 225 people arrested were violating immigration laws, ICE says, and of them, more than 180 were convicted criminals or have charges pending against them. ICE said that 80 of them had been told to leave the country and didn't, or had been previously deported and returned illegally.

"ICE continues to face significant obstacles with policies created by local officials which hinder cooperation between ICE and local law enforcement," Thomas Decker, the filed office director for ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations, said in a press release. "Yet, with the tireless efforts of the men and women of ICE, this operation was a great success."

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According to ICE, some of those arrested on Long Island had allegedly committed serious crimes. In Brentwood, ICE officers arrested a 35-year-old Guatemalan national who had been deported five times. Officials say they were convicted of DWI, driving without a license and illegally reentering the country.

In Hempstead, they arrested a 40-year-old Salvadoran national, who had also been previously deported, and who was convicted of assault, burglary of a vehicle, attempted forcible touching, criminal possession of a controlled substance, driving without a license, DUI and sexual abuse.

Those arrested by ICE officers include people from Brazil, China, Colombia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Venezuela and many more countries.

ICE said it focuses on people who pose a threat to national security, public safety and border security. However, it no longer exempts any undocumented immigrants from enforcement. Anyone in violation of immigration laws may be arrested, ICE says, and possibly deported.

"The fact is that a so-called 'sanctuary city' does not only provide refuge to those who are here against immigration law, but also provides protections for criminal aliens who prey on the people in their own communities by committing crimes at all levels," Decker said. "ICE is committed to enforcing the immigration laws set forth by Congress with integrity, despite the push-back and rhetoric within the city they serve."

Photo: Courtesy ICE