ERO San Francisco arrests 19 noncitizens during national operation

SAN FRANCISCO - Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) San Francisco announced the arrests of 19 noncitizens during a national operation that ran from Aug. 4 through Aug. 25, 2023. Officers focused enforcement efforts on priority fugitive noncitizens and priority noncitizens previously removed from the United States who reentered the country illegally; specifically, those identified as having a criminal conviction for certain felonies or convictions for other crimes including but not limited to murder for hire, manslaughter, sex crimes against children, assault with a firearm, battery, domestic violence, drug trafficking, possession of a controlled substance and driving under the influence.

Officers prioritized enforcement actions in accordance with the Guidelines for the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Law issued by Secretary Mayorkas on Sept. 30, 2021, and reinstituted on June 28.

Those arrested include:

• A 35-year-old citizen of Mexico in Chico, convicted by the Butte County Superior Court of felony possession of child sexual abuse images and dissuading a witness from reporting a crime.
• A 53-year-old citizen of Mexico in Stockton, convicted by the San Joaquin County Superior Court of felony lewd or lascivious acts with a minor.
• A 41-year-old citizen of Mexico in Bakersfield, convicted by the Kern County Superior Court of felony assault with a firearm.

ERO officers evaluated individuals on a case-by-case basis, assessing the totality of the facts and circumstances to make informed arrest determinations. Those cases amenable to federal criminal prosecution can be presented to the U.S. attorney’s office. ERO also coordinates with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to evaluate the status and processing of relevant immigration applications, as appropriate.

Noncitizens placed into removal proceedings receive their legal due process from federal immigration judges in the immigration courts, which are administered by the 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 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case. ICE officers carry out the removal decisions made by the federal immigration judges.

In fiscal year 2022, ERO arrested 46,396 noncitizens with criminal histories. The 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.

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.

Members of the public can report crime and suspicious activity by calling 866-347-2423 or completing the online tip form.

Learn more about ERO San Francisco’s mission on X, formerly known as Twitter, @EROSanFrancisco.