'Operation Cross Check' Nets 596 Arrests (WGCL-GA)

'Operation Cross Check' Nets 596 Arrests
ICE: People Arrested Have Dangerous Criminal Records

By Mike Paluska, CBS Atlanta Reporter
POSTED: 5:43 pm EDT April 30, 2010

ATLANTA -- A nine-state operation led by Immigration and Customs Enforcement ended late Thursday night. In Georgia, agents said 124 illegal immigrants were taken into custody.

All of the foreign nationals served time in the past for convictions, including for murder, sexual assault, drugs and domestic abuse.

“These are not the people we want on the streets of Atlanta,” said Felicia Skinner , director of the ICE field office in Atlanta . “Aliens with criminal convictions who legally return after being convicted will be prosecuted and receive lengthy prison sentences if convicted, the maximum is 20 years."

Three of the people arrested are convicted murderers, she said. But after serving their prison terms, they were released back into the United States, forcing federal agents and local law enforcement to track them down again.

CBS Atlanta News had tough questions for the director about what needs to be done to keep that from happening again in the future. “ These convictions are usually state offenses, and once they serve their time, they are released through possibly probation after they've served their time,” said Skinner. “The fact of the matter is, ICE has limited resources and as we continue to expand our partnerships with county jails and local authorities, we recognize we need to do more.”

The operation included agents working with teams from the U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and local law enforcement. Arrests in Florida and Puerto Rico accounted for the largest number of apprehensions during the operation . A total of 258 were taken into custody in those places.

The Atlanta Field Office , which includes neighboring states, that includes, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Alabama recorded the next highest number of arrests with 232. ICE officials said they have removed a total of 136,126 criminal aliens from the United States in the last year, a record number.