ICE arrests 543 undocumented criminals, 7 gang members in Houston-area operation

HOUSTON - Nearly 650 undocumented immigrants, including 543 criminals and seven gang members, were arrested during a week-long enforcement operation in the Houston area.

The operation was conducted between Feb. 23 and March 2.

ICE Operation in Houston Area

By the numbers:

During the operation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in conjunction with federal, state and local law enforcement, executed 71 criminal arrest warrants and arrested 543 undocumented immigrants who have been charged or convicted of a criminal offense while they were illegally present in the U.S., including:

• 140 undocumented criminals charged or convicted of an aggravated felony or other violent offense such as homicide, aggravated assault, or domestic violence.
• 34 undocumented criminals charged or convicted of a sex offense or child sex offense such as aggravated sexual assault of a minor, possession of child pornography, or rape.
• 38 undocumented criminals convicted of illegal firearms offenses such as unlawful carrying of a firearm, alien in possession of a firearm and aggravated assault with a firearm.
• 52 undocumented criminals charged or convicted of illicit narcotics offenses such as drug trafficking, or possession of a controlled substance.
• 51 undocumented criminals charged or convicted of property crimes such as burglary or theft.
• 93 undocumented criminals charged or convicted of driving while intoxicated.

What they're saying:

"In recent years, some of the world’s most dangerous fugitives, transnational gang members and criminal aliens have taken advantage of the crisis at our nation’s southern border to illegally enter the U.S.," said ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Houston Field Office Director Bret Bradford. "After illegally entering the country, many of these criminal aliens have gone on to commit violent crime and reign terror on law-abiding residents. Fueled by our unwavering commitment to protect the public from harm, and united in our determination to restore integrity to our nation’s system of laws, ICE and our law enforcement partners in Southeast Texas have banded together to remove these dangerous criminal aliens from our local communities and put an end to the lawlessness that they spread."   

"In just one week working alongside our counterparts from federal, state and local law enforcement, ICE HSI special agents successfully executed 71 criminal arrest warrants and made 554 administrative arrests that included illegally present human smugglers, gang members, human traffickers, child sex offenders, drug traffickers and weapons traffickers," said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Houston Special Agent in Charge Chad Plantz. "These collective efforts have made our local communities significantly safer and strengthened our national security and border security. As a result, we’ve sent a resounding message to transnational criminal organizations everywhere that the law enforcement community in the Texas Gulf Coast is more united than ever and will not rest until we’ve eradicated these criminal elements from the country."