An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation caught more than 130 convicted sex offenders who were back in the United States illegally earlier this fall, showing again how the Biden administration's border crisis is endangering American families and failing to keep threat-posing individuals out of the country.
Taking place from October 22 to November 4, the ICE operation rounded up 138 "unlawfully present noncitizens convicted of sex offenses" — that is, illegal immigrants who'd already committed sex crimes against Americans — many of whom already had orders for removal from the United States.
A partial list of the illegal immigrants rounded up by ICE shows that their ages ranged from 29 to 65 and countries of origin included Mexico, Guatemala, Haiti, Cameroon, Bolivia, Nicaragua, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The individuals were captured across the country, from California to New York and Texas to Illinois.
The crimes for which they were convicted include child molestation, predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, continuous sexual abuse of a child, rape, promoting prostitution, and other offenses, as a release from ICE summarized this week:
- A 65-year-old citizen of Mexico in La Puente, California, convicted by the Superior Court in Pomona of continuous sexual abuse of a child in March 2022
- A 61-year-old citizen of Mexico in Richland, Washington, convicted by the Benton County Superior Court of child molestation in January 2020
- A 50-year-old citizen of Mexico in Winnie, Texas, convicted by the Chambers County District Attorney’s Office of sexual performance by child in August 2022
- A 49-year-old citizen of Guatemala in Chicago, convicted by the Cook County Circuit Court of predatory criminal sexual assault of a minor in October 2017
- A 49-year-old citizen of Cameroon in Front Royal, Virginia, convicted by the Circuit Court in Prince George County of sexual abuse of a minor in June 2022
- A 44-year-old citizen of Haiti in Queens Village, New York, convicted by the Queens County Supreme Court of rape in the second degree, promoting prostitution in the second degree and promoting prostitution in the third degree in September 2017
- A 42-year-old citizen of Bolivia in Levittown, New York, convicted by the Nassau County Court of first-degree rape in April 2002
- A 36-year-old citizen of Nicaragua in El Monte, California, convicted by the Superior Court in Los Angeles of assault with intent to rape, robbery in the second degree, and rape with force/violence/fear of bodily injury in March 2015
- A 35-year-old citizen of Mexico in Jourdanton, Texas, convicted by the 144th District Court of Bexar County of aggravated sexual assault of child in July 2019
- A 29-year-old citizen of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Milwaukee, convicted by the Milwaukee County Circuit Court of second-degree sexual assault of a child in March 2022
ICE's release explains that the agency "targets and arrests noncitizens who have committed crimes and other individuals who have violated our nation’s immigration laws," adding ICE officers "make case decisions in a responsible manner, informed by their experience as law enforcement professionals and in a way that best protects against the greatest threats to the homeland." But, as ICE explains, "those in violation of immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and — if found removable by final order — removed from the United States."
The fact that being a duly convicted sex offender while in the United States illegally does not earn these individuals an expedited and immediate one-way trip out of the country is inexplicable.
Meanwhile, President Biden and others in his administration continue to claim that the U.S.-Mexico border is secure and there is no crisis — but operations like ICE's latest that find more than 130 sex criminals in the country illegally prove that dangerous individuals continue to endanger communities across our country.