ICE arrests 63 individuals in Colorado and Wyoming in latest operation targeting criminal aliens
Targets included those with arrests or convictions for assault, domestic violence, other crimes involving victims
DENVER — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced Tuesday the results of recent enforcement actions targeting removable aliens who have been arrested for, or have pending charges or convictions, for crimes involving victims in Colorado and Wyoming.
“During this effort we focused specifically on those who may have suffered disproportionally during the pandemic,” said John Fabbricatore, field office director, Denver. “We specifically targeted our enforcement actions at abusers and helped victims by eliminating the threat posed by their perpetrators, and in some cases, preventing future victimization by recidivist offenders,”
During the enforcement action, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers arrested 63 at-large individuals living illegally in the U.S., or who are removable from the U.S. due to their criminal histories. About 85 percent of those arrested by ICE on immigration charges also had criminal convictions or pending criminal charges.
Examples of recent arrests under the new initiative include:
- 27-year-old citizen of Mexico, in Denver, Colorado with convictions for indecent exposure, indecent exposure-masturbation, child abuse-knowing/reckless-no injury, harassment-strike/shove kick and sentenced him to 3 years’ confinement and 12 months’ probation and that he register as a sex offender. The criminal alien is a self-admitted and documented member of the West-Side Bloods criminal street gang.
- 29-year-old citizen of Mexico in Aurora, Colorado with pending charges for robbery, obstructing telephone service, assault 3 - know/reckless cause injury and three counts of child abuse. The charges are currently pending. He has prior convictions for drug possession.
- 39-year-old citizen of Mexico in Timnath, Colorado with pending charges for assault 2 -strangulation (domestic violence based) and child abuse. He has a prior conviction for DUI.
- 40-year-old citizen of Mexico in Longmont, Colorado with convictions for DUI with 2+priors and felony vehicular assault – DUI. He also has 3 previous DUI charges.
- 21-year-old citizen of Mexico in Denver, Colorado with convictions for Sexual Contact – No Consent and Assault 3 – Know/Reckless Cause Injury and must register as a sex offender.
- 37-year-old citizen of Mexico in Durango, Colorado arrested for charges of attempted murder and obstructing telephone service.
ICE continues to target criminal aliens and other public safety and national security threats every day. ICE does not exempt classes or categories of removable aliens from potential enforcement. All those in violation of immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the United States. ICE takes many factors into account when targeting and arresting individuals, including their criminal and immigration history.
“Behind each one of these arrests is a child who has suffered abuse or a battered spouse or a person who nearly died,” said Fabbricatore. “Let’s not lose sight of the fact that there are some abusive people living in our communities who should not be here. By focusing our efforts on these abusers, we’re doing our part to help families during this pandemic.”
Victims of crime committed by individuals with a nexus to immigration are encouraged to contact ICE’s VOICE office if they need assistance. The VOICE office affords victims and their loved ones a single point of contact to obtain information regarding criminal aliens in ICE custody, including the ability to get automated custody status information, releasable case history about the perpetrator, or having an ICE representative explain the immigration enforcement and removal process. The toll-free VOICE Hotline number is 1-855-48-VOICE.
ICE exercises all appropriate prosecutorial discretion when encountering the family members of arrest targets and evaluates each individual situation to determine the appropriate course of action. In according with ICE Directive 10076.1 Prosecutorial Discretion: Certain Victims, Witnesses, and Plaintiffs, ICE should exercise all appropriate prosecutorial discretion to minimize any effect that immigration enforcement may have on the willingness and ability of victims, witnesses, and plaintiffs to call police and pursue justice.
In FY 2019, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested individuals with more than 1,900 convictions and charges for homicide, 1,800 for kidnapping, 12,000 sex offenses, 5,000 sexual assaults, 45,000 assaults, 67,000 crimes involving drugs, 10,000 weapons offenses, and 74,000 DUIs.
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