More than 200 illegal immigrants apprehended in NYC-area operation, ICE says
Immigration and Customs Enforcement says it has detained more than 200 migrants who entered the U.S. illegally during an operation in the New York City area.
Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said last week's operation "targeted the most dangerous alien offenders in some of the most crime-infested neighborhoods."
ICE arrests 206 people during New York City-area sweep
In all, 206 people were arrested, including a 22-year-old member of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang found at a building on Dekalb Avenue in the Bronx, according to law enforcement sources.
"New York is much safer today because of the hard work of ICE and our law enforcement partners," Lyons said.
According to ICE, "121 of the 206 people apprehended had significant criminal convictions or are currently facing charges for crimes such as murder, assault, arson, sex crimes, drug crimes and firearms crimes."
"The majority of the aliens arrested have egregious criminal histories to include manslaughter, rape, assault, drug trafficking and sex assault against minors," ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations New York City Acting Field Office Director Judith Almodovar said.
ICE has not yet responded to CBS News New York's question about the criminal records of the other 85 people.
Crowd protests outside ICE headquarters in Foley Square
Mayor Eric Adams said Thursday the city is not allowed to collaborate with ICE for civil enforcement, but he made clear his support for arresting dangerous gang members.
"I don't know why we want to romanticize what dangerous gangs are. They're dangerous gangs and we're going to do everything possible to collaborate with federal officials to remove these dangerous gangs off our streets," he said. "We had an undocumented person that raped a 14-year-old child. I'm not on his side. I'm on the side of justice to go after him."
Word of the arrests came as protesters got set to gather in New York City and around the U.S. for a national "Communities Not Cages" day of action against the Trump administration's uptick in detentions and deportations.
A group outside ICE's headquarters in Foley Square voiced their anger toward the administration, specifically on the arrests of Mahmoud Khalil and Mohsen Mahdawi, two Columbia students who had green cards and led pro-Palestinian demonstrations on campus.
"It's really concerning when people get taken off the streets without due process," said Adam Brown, a Hunter College professor. "I brought my kids here because I wanted them to see what democracy looks like."
Homeland Security sends parole termination notices to people without criminal histories
News of the operation comes as the Department of Homeland Security sends Notices of Termination Parole to lawyers and their clients who are in the U.S. illegally, but do not have criminal histories.
The notices read, in part, "Your parole will terminate seven days from the date of this notice ... If you do not depart the United States immediately, you will be subject to potential law enforcement actions ... Do not attempt to remain in the U.S. -- the federal government will find you."
Immigration attorney Michael Wildes, a former federal prosecutor, calls it "very harsh rhetoric."
"They're looking for gimmicks and this whole thing is a gimmick," he said. "At this level, if the administration continues with about 12-1,500 people a day, the president will have removed about two and a half million people. There's about 30 million people here. It's still a drop in the bucket."
Wildes said one of his clients who is here for cancer treatment and married to an American received the notice from Homeland Security.
"It's very disconcerting to our clients who were given some form of hospitality to immediately be told that they have to leave," he said.
