MAGA! Out Of 200 Arrested Illegal Immigrants, 169 of Them Had Criminal Records Including Rape and Drug Trafficking

A convicted rapist and a previously deported cocaine trafficker were among nearly 200 criminal aliens and immigration fugitives arrested in a Los Angeles-area crackdown, authorities said Thursday.



Officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) division say of those arrested, 169, or almost 90 percent, had prior criminal convictions, primarily drug offenses, DUIs and domestic violence.



Among those arrested were:



A 29-year-old Salvadoran national convicted of rape in California who officials say was deported in 2013 after serving a nine-year prison term, but subsequently returned to the U.S. illegally;


A previously deported 51-year-old Mexican national arrested May 22 in La Puente who served three years in the California Department of Corrections following his conviction for cocaine trafficking;


A 47-year-old Mexican national with prior convictions for felony assault and another conviction for battery, and whom DHS say was released in 2014 by local authorities despite an ICE detainer; and


A 26-year-old Salvadoran national with a final order of removal arrested May 21 in Azusa who is a registered sex offender based upon his 2014 conviction for having unlawful sex with a minor.


“Operations like this are emblematic of the vital work ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations officers do every day seeking to locate, arrest, and ultimately deport at-large convicted criminals and other immigration fugitives who pose a threat to public safety,” said David Marin, field office director for ERO in Los Angeles. “By taking these individuals off the streets and removing them from the country, we’re making our communities safer for everyone.”



At least eight of the individuals arrested during the just concluded enforcement action now face federal prosecution for re-entry after deportation, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison, authorities said.



Los Angeles County had the highest number of arrests — 93, followed by 26 in Riverside County, 23 in Orange County, 21 in San Bernardino County, 14 in Ventura County and 11 in Santa Barbara County.



Nine of the arrests were made in Riverside, with four in Moreno Valley, three each in Corona and Perris, two in Indio, and one each in Hemet, Menifee and Norco.



The majority of those arrested – 80 percent – were from Mexico. Smaller numbers were identified as Salvadoran, Guatemalan, Armenian and Russian nationals.