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The 225 were apprehended for violating U.S. immigration laws, officials announced on Tuesday, April 17. Of those arrested, more than 180 were convicted criminals or had criminal charges pending, more than 80 had been issued a final order of removal and failed to depart the United States, or had been previously removed from the United States and returned illegally.
Several had prior felony convictions for serious or violent offenses, such as child sex crimes, weapons charges, and assault, or had past convictions for significant or multiple misdemeanors.
Westchester Rockland, Orange and Dutchess comprised the four Hudson Valley counties in which arrests were made.
The arrestees include nationals from Albania, Antigua, Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burma, China, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Jordan, Kosovo, Maldives, Mexico, Mongolia, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Tajikistan, Trinidad, Turkey, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Venezuela.
Some of the individuals arrested during this operation will face federal criminal prosecutions for illegal entry and illegal re-entry after deportation. The arrestees who are not being federally prosecuted will be processed administratively for removal from the United States. Those who have outstanding orders of deportation, or who returned to the United States illegally after being deported, are subject to immediate removal from the country. The remaining individuals are in ICE custody awaiting a hearing before an immigration judge, or pending travel arrangements for removal in the near future.
More than 60 individuals arrested during this operation were previously released from local law enforcement on an active detainer. ICE places detainers on individuals who have been arrested on local criminal charges and who are suspected of being deportable, so that ICE can take custody of that person when he or she is released from local custody.
"ICE continues to face significant obstacles with policies created by local officials which hinder cooperation between ICE and local law enforcement," said Thomas R. Decker, field office director for ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations in New York. "Yet, with the tireless efforts of the men and women of ICE, this operation was a great success."
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