Immigration sweep last month results in 2,400 arrests nationally, 7 in Tulsa (Tulsa World)

Immigration sweep last month results in 2,400 arrests nationally, 7 in Tulsa

By GINNIE GRAHAM World Staff Writer
Published: 6/21/2011  3:36 PM

The federal immigration service made seven arrests in Tulsa during a May national sweep that netted the capture of more than 2,400 immigrants with criminal backgrounds.

Carl Rusnok, spokesman with the U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement, said names of those arrested are not public, citing a “privacy policy.”

The Tulsa Jail shows 12 immigrants booked by ICE agents into the jail in May.

The federal “Cross Check” enforcement operation involved about 500 ICE agents working with officers from the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and state and local law enforcement.

During a seven-day targeted effort in 50 states, more than 2,400 immigrants were arrested, according to a news release from ICE.

About 22 percent of those arrested were immigration fugitives, meaning they were convicted of crimes with orders of deportation and failed to leave the country. The others are immigrants who had been deported after being convicted and served a sentence then illegally re-entered the country.

Oklahoma is part of the Dallas office of immigration services. The operation resulted in 106 arrests in north Texas and 34 in Oklahoma, according to the news release.

In Oklahoma, 17 arrests were in Oklahoma City, seven in Tulsa and 10 in other cities.

Tulsa Jail records of the May ICE holds included two with a history of drug offenses and one with a previous drinking and driving offense.

In north Texas, 31 arrests were in Dallas, 17 in Longview, nine in Lubbock and 26 in other Texas cities.

ICE has removed a record number of more than 109,700 criminal immigrants in fiscal year 2011, including more than 585 who had been convicted of homicide and more than 3,177 convicted sex offenders.

The federal government first launched Cross Check in December 2009 and has since conducted similar operations in 37 states. In previous Cross Check sweeps, ICE has arrested 2,064 convicted criminal immigrants, fugitives and immigrants who illegally re-entered the U.S. after deportation.

“The results of this operation underscore ICE’s ongoing focus on arresting those convicted criminal aliens who prey upon our communities, and tracking down fugitives who game our nation’s immigration system,” stated ICE Director John Morton in a news release.

“This targeted enforcement operation is a direct result of excellent teamwork among law enforcement agencies who share a commitment to protect public safety.”