Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs | https://www.dhs.gov/
Despite the ongoing government shutdown, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers continue to carry out arrests of individuals described as dangerous criminal illegal aliens. ICE officials report that their law enforcement personnel are working without pay due to the shutdown.
Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin stated, “During the Democrats’ government shutdown, our ICE law enforcement officers are working without pay to arrest pedophiles, human smugglers, and other violent criminals from our streets. We will not let the government shutdown slow us down from making America safe again. Our law enforcement officers are working around the clock to arrest and remove heinous criminals from our country.”
Recent arrests made by ICE include:
- Jose Estrada-Hidalgo, a Mexican national convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child under 14 in Tarrant County, Texas.
- Milton Omar Valdez-Carrasco, a Mexican national convicted of criminal sexual contact with a minor in Vineland, New Jersey.
- Silvino Juan Martinez-Montesinos, a Mexican national convicted for a course of sexual conduct in New York City.
- Calixto Mendez-Gomez, a Guatemalan national convicted of solicitation to commit human smuggling in Maricopa County, Arizona.
- Rafael Puerto-Urbina, a Honduran national convicted of felony theft of property valued between $10,000 and $60,000 in Shelby County, Tennessee.
The agency has highlighted these cases as examples of its ongoing efforts to enforce immigration laws during the funding lapse.
