Immigration sweep leads to 67 Michigan arrests; more than 3,100 in U.S.

12:18 PM, April 2, 2012

ICE ERO arrested more than 3,100 convicted criminal aliens, fugitives and immigration violators in a six-day nationwide enforcement action. In this photo an agent escorts a criminal alien after an arrest in Miami. / U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

By Tresa Baldas
Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

A six-day, national immigration sweep has led to the arrests of more than 3,100 unlawful immigrants, nearly half of whom had violent felony convictions, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced today.

Of the total arrests, 67 occurred in Michigan, which included: 21 arrests in metro Detroit, 19 in the Grand Rapids area, and the remaining 27 were arrested around the state.

• Photos: ICE officers make an arrest on Detroit’s northwest side and ICE officers make an arrest in Dearborn

bull; Video: Michigan b-roll and photos

According to ICE, the Michigan arrestees were primarily men from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Cuba, Iraq, El Salvador, Bosnia-Herzegovinian, Cuba, Ghana, the U.K., Haiti and Lebanon.

Of the total number of arrestees nationwide, 2,834 had prior criminal convictions: 1,000 of which had multiple criminal convictions, ICE said.

Nearly 1,400 of those arrested nationwide had felony convictions including murder, manslaughter, attempted murder, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, armed robbery, terroristic threats, drug trafficking, child abuse, battery on a child, sexual crimes against minors, and aggravated assault. About 50 were gang members and 149 were convicted sex offenders.

“The results of this targeted enforcement operation underscore ICE's ongoing commitment and focus on the arrest and removal of convicted criminal aliens and those that game our nation's immigration system,” said ICE Director John Morton. “Because of the tireless efforts and teamwork of ICE officers and agents in tracking down criminal aliens and fugitives, there are 3,168 fewer criminal aliens and egregious immigration law violators in our neighborhoods across the country.”

In addition to being convicted criminals, 698 of those arrested were also immigration fugitives who had previously been ordered to leave the country but failed to depart. Additionally, 559 were illegal re-entrants who had been previously removed from the country. Because of their serious criminal histories and prior immigration arrest records, at least 204 of those arrested during the enforcement action were presented to U.S attorneys for prosecution on a variety of charges including illegal re-entry after deportation, a felony which carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.

The arrestees include:

• Carlington David Richards, 34, a national of Jamaica, who was residing in Federal Way, Wash., is a recent border entrant and an international fugitive from justice, wanted in Jamaica for murder.

• Jose Angel Duran-Ramos, 66, a national of Mexico, who was residing in El Paso, Texas, convicted of murder on July 10, 1984, and sentenced to 18 years in prison. He was an at-large criminal alien. He is currently in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

• Veasna Uy, 34, a national of Cambodia, who was residing in Long Beach, Calif., who was an immigration fugitive convicted on April 5, 2000, of manslaughter, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon. He was placed in ICE custody pending removal from the U.S.

Since 2009, ICE has conducted seven regional and two national Cross Check operations, resulting in the arrests of more than 7,400 convicted criminal immigrants.

Immigration sweep leads to 67 Michigan arrests; more than 3,100 in U.S. | Detroit Free Press | freep.com