[FoxNews] Agency says many arrests came after authorities refused to honor ICE immigration detainers and released illegals back into community
ICE and several federal law enforcement agencies arrested over 200 illegal aliens in an "enhanced immigration enforcement operation" in the "most crime-infested neighborhoods" in and around New York City in just one week this month.
According to a statement by ICE released on Wednesday, 206 illegal immigrants, the majority of whom have "egregious criminal histories to include manslaughter, rape, assault, drug trafficking and sex assault against minors," were apprehended as part of the operation.
The operation took place in New York City and throughout Long Island and the Lower Hudson Valley region between April 6-12.
According to the ICE statement, the agency and partners targeted "egregious criminal alien offenders," including transnational criminal organizations like the recently designated international terrorist organizations MS-13 and Tren de Aragua as well as the violent Sureños and 18th Street gangs.
The agency said many of the arrests were made after local authorities in New York refused to honor immigration detainers filed by ICE and instead released the illegals back into the community.
Of the 206 arrested, ICE said 121 had major criminal convictions or are currently facing charges for murder, assault, arson, sex crimes, drug crimes and firearms crimes.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat who is running for re-election as an independent, appeared to back ICE's arrests of criminal illegals, telling Fox News that the left is making a mistake by diverging from the sentiments of the majority of New Yorkers that illegal criminals and gang members should be taken off the streets.
"One of the big mistakes that's being made in some parts of the far-left philosophy is that ICE is a criminal organization. They are not, they are part of our law enforcement community," he said, adding, "We have to get bad, dangerous people off our streets." 
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