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July 3, 2023New Orleans, LA, United StatesEnforcement and Removal

ERO New Orleans arrests 15 during local operation

ICE ERO New Orleans arrested 15 unlawfully present individuals in a two-week Arkansas-based operation

NEW ORLEANS — Deportation officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) New Orleans arrested 15 unlawfully present individuals in a two-week Arkansas-based operation. The operation focused its efforts on noncitizens identified as having been convicted of egregious criminal offenses, presenting a danger to national security, or posing a risk to public safety.

Using an organized, methodical investigative approach to the identification, location and arrest of criminal noncitizens, the Arkansas Fugitive Operations Team and probation officers from Arkansas Community Corrections identified 16 individuals and arrested 15 of them. The effort included noncitizens with a final order of removal who were released from incarceration or who were placed on probation and placed on supervised release. Cases amenable to federal criminal prosecution may be presented to the appropriate U.S. attorney’s office.

“Today, Arkansas residents are safer because of the professional actions of our immigration enforcement team and law enforcement partners,” said ERO New Orleans Field Office Director Mellissa Harper. “ERO will continue to uphold our nation’s immigration laws and prioritize enforcement actions against those who violate our laws and harm our communities. Many of those arrested in this operation are repeat criminal offenders who have repeatedly taxed local criminal justice system resources. ERO has removed these criminals from the community and they will now face the consequences of their actions.”

Those arrested include:

  • A 26-year-old citizen of Mexico with felony convictions for stolen property and resisting arrest. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 41-year-old citizen of Mexico with a conviction for felony larceny. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 29-year-old citizen of Mexico with convictions for felony battery, amphetamine possession and driving under the influence. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 25-year-old citizen of Guatemala with convictions for drug possession, resisting arrest and flight/escape. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 21-year-old citizen of Mexico with a conviction for larceny. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 50-year-old citizen of Mexico with convictions for amphetamine possession and domestic violence. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 40-year-old citizen of Mexico with convictions for drug possession and felony damage to property. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 32-year-old citizen of Mexico with a conviction for amphetamine possession. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 26-year-old citizen of Guatemala with three convictions for driving under the influence and one conviction for neglect of a child. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 39-year-old citizen of Guatemala with a conviction for fraud. She was previously ordered removed by an immigration judge and will remain in custody pending removal.
  • A 51-year-old citizen of Mexico with a conviction for fraud. She will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 50-year-old citizen of Mexico with a conviction for felony drug possession. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.
  • A 43-year-old citizen of Mexico with convictions for aggravated assault, assault and domestic violence. The Eastern District of Arkansas has accepted him for prosecution for the charge of noncitizen in possession of a firearm.
  • A 37-year-old citizen of Mexico with a conviction for felony domestic battery. He was issued a notice to appear and released to continue medical treatment.
  • An 18-year-old citizen of the Marshall Islands with three convictions for felony burglary. He will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.

The final subject was a 58-year-old citizen of Mexico with convictions for drug possession, aiding a prisoner escape, domestic violence and driving under the influence. During the initial investigation, ERO officers learned the subject was deceased and closed the case.

ICE officers carefully evaluated individual cases, assessing the totality of the facts and circumstances to make informed arrest determinations. Those cases amenable to federal prosecution will be presented to the U.S. attorney’s office.

Noncitizens placed into removal proceedings receive their legal due process from federal immigration judges in the immigration courts, which are administered by the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). EOIR is an agency within the U.S. Department of Justice and is separate from the Department of Homeland Security and ICE. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case. ERO officers carry out the removal decisions made by the federal immigration judges.

In fiscal year 2022, ERO arrested 46,396 noncitizens with criminal histories. This group had 198,498 associated charges and convictions, including 21,531 assault offenses; 8,164 sex and sexual assault offenses; 5,554 weapons offenses; 1,501 homicide-related offenses; and 1,114 kidnapping offenses.

Members of the public who have information about foreign fugitives are urged to contact ICE by calling the ICE tip line at 866-347-2423 or internationally at 001-1802-872-6199. They can also file a tip online by completing ICE’s online tip form. Callers may remain anonymous.

As one of ICE’s three operational directorates, ERO is the principal federal law enforcement authority in charge of domestic immigration enforcement. ERO’s mission is to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of U.S. communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws, and its primary areas of focus are interior enforcement operations, management of the agency’s detained and non-detained populations, and repatriation of noncitizens who have received final orders of removal. ERO’s workforce consists of more than 7,700 law enforcement and non-law enforcement support personnel across 25 domestic field offices and 208 locations nationwide, 30 overseas postings, and multiple temporary duty travel assignments along the border.

For more news and information on how the ERO New Orleans field office carries out its immigration enforcement mission, follow us on Twitter @ERONewOrleans.

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