Thread: 600,000 illegal immigrants are hiding in the U.S. to avoid

Updated: 06-21-2007 09:52:24 AM


Story by wnbc.com


More raids and arrests are cutting the number of illegal immigrants hiding in the United States, homeland security officials said.

Nationwide, more than 600,000 illegal immigrants are hiding in the U.S. to avoid court orders of deportation, according to authorities.

Traditionally the number of immigrants increases by about 5,000 a month, authorities said.

However, in the past months, the nationwide number of immigrant fugitives actually decreased by 500, the first such drop in years, authorities reported.

"The fugitive population has grown by several thousand over the last several years," said Marc Raimondi, spokesman of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "What we've done is, we've turned the corner to the point where we're not adding, we're actually reducing that."

Immigration officials attribute the drop to stepped-up enforcement.

For example, in New York, there have been 1,069 arrests in 2007, which is double the total from all of 2006 - 426 arrests.

Officials said that more than 10,000 of the estimated 15,000 illegal immigrants arrested nationwide in 2006 were fugitives.

Authorities said there are 60,000 illegal immigrants classified as fugitives in the tri-state area, and the majority have been convicted of crimes.

The crackdown includes adding more fugitive operation teams throughout the country - 75 teams by year's end, compared to 15 in 2005. The crackdown also includes a new policy of holding immigrants in detention centers while they await hearings instead of releasing them.

Teams of "Immigration and Customs Enforcement" (ICE) agents are hitting the streets targeting the worst offenders; those convicted of such felonies as rape and robbery.

Nine fugitive apprehension teams conduct raids almost every day in the New York area alone, targeting people with the most serious criminal pasts.

NewsChannel4 accompanied ICE agents on patrols and raids throughout Brooklyn this week. In three hours, nearly a dozen agents found and arrested five fugitives - one a convicted robber, another a convicted gunman. Another man was found hiding in a closet. He was ordered deported because of his lengthy rap sheet.

"They do pose a threat to public safety and we are reducing that population," said Brian Banks, team leader of the ICE raids.



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More those who want to stay in the shadows....

i know where one is. in a chicago church.

go get her NOW

Sure would be nice if they posted the fugitive's names somewhere so the public could root them out?

I'm sure there would be MILLIONS of Americans looking at the list and pointing their fingers to find these illegals.