Hundreds of “illegal immigrant criminals” arrested, hundreds more flown out of U.S. by military, White House says
Hundreds of “illegal immigrant criminals” in the United States were arrested Thursday and hundreds of others were flown out of the country on military aircraft as President Trump’s promised mass deportation operation got underway, the White House said.
In a post on X Thursday night, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “The Trump Administration arrested 538 illegal immigrant criminals including a suspected terrorist, four members of the Tren de Aragua gang, and several illegals convicted of sex crimes against minors.”
She gave no further details about the arrests.
Meanwhile, a defense official said there were two flights overnight. Both went to Guatemala, according to two sources, and carried 81 deportees. However, a Guatemalan official said 79 Guatemalans had been returned, 31 women and 48 men.
Leavitt stated, “The Trump Administration also deported hundreds of illegal immigrant criminals via military aircraft. The largest massive deportation operation in history is well underway.”
Three officials say the plan to use military aircraft for the deportation flights was approved under the Trump administration, not the Biden administration. The flights are part of the actions the acting secretary of defense announced on Wednesday following Mr. Trump’s executive action ordering the U.S. military to step up its presence on the border.
Tren de Aragua is a violent gang that started in Venezuela and has now started to spread into the U.S. It became something of a flashpoint during the presidential campaign.
Mr. Trump promised a crackdown on illegal immigration during the campaign and began his second term this week with a flurry of executive actions aimed at overhauling the U.S. immigration system.
There are an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States. Many have been in the country for many years.
On Thursday, Newark, New Jersey Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democrat, said in a statement that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents “raided a local establishment … detaining undocumented residents as well as citizens, without producing a warrant.”
Baraka said one of those detained during the raid was a U.S. military veteran.
contributed to this report.