Convicted murderer in El Paso among those arrested during ICE operation

By Adriana M. Chávez / El Paso Timeslcsun-news.com
Posted: 04/02/2012 03:33:18 PM MDT

ICE officials in El Paso announced today that 18 criminal immigrants in El Paso County were arrested as part of Operation Cross Check. In New Mexico, 33 people were taken into custody as part of the operation.

A convicted murderer living in El Paso was one of more than 3,100 criminal illegal immigrants targeted during a six-day operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs enforcement agents.

The nationwide operation, dubbed "Cross Check," was the largest of its kind, according to ICE officials, and involved more than 1,900 ICE officers and agents from ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations' 24 field offices. The operation's focus was to track down convicted criminal illegal immigrants, immigration fugitives and immigration violators, officials said.

An ICE spokeswoman in El Paso said the number of local arrestees should be released later today.

The most notable local arrest was that of Jose Angel Duran-Ramos, 66, a Mexican national living in El Paso. He was convicted of murder on July 10, 1984, and sentenced to 18 years in prison.

ICE said at the time of Duran-Ramos' arrest, he had been considered an "at-large criminal alien." He is now in ICE custody pending deportation proceedings, ICE officials said today.

"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 in a news release. "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."
Officers arrested 2,834 people with prior criminal convictions, including at least 1,063 who had multiple criminal convictions. Many of those arrested 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.

Of the total 2,834 criminal aliens arrested, 50 were gang members and 149 were convicted sex offenders.

ICE officials first conducted the the Cross Check operation in December 2009, and has since conducted seven regional and two national Cross Check operations resulting in the arrest of more than 7,400 convicted criminal immigrants.

The first nationwide Cross Check operation occurred at the end of May 2011 and resulted in the arrests of 2,442 convicted criminal immigrants, officials said.

Convicted murderer in El Paso among those arrested during ICE operation - Las Cruces Sun-News