President Donald Trump&#8217;s mass deportation campaign has come for a former Chicago-area teacher accused of helping Tren de Aragua gang members orchestrate a mass shooting.
Venezuelan illegal immigrant Giovanna Mercedes Moreno Occhipinti, 32, allegedly drove two shooters who opened fire during a December 2024 house party in Chicago and helped them evade law enforcement, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Three people were killed in the shooting and several others were wounded.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Bye bye 👋 <a href="https://t.co/GgbpY9vDG2">https://t.co/GgbpY9vDG2</a> <a href="https://t.co/ruozQIqnXB">pic.twitter.com/ruozQIqnXB</a>
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) <a href="https://x.com/DHSgov/status/2080418067884961827?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 23, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
On Friday, DHS posted a photo of Moreno Occhipinti standing on a tarmac with the caption: &#8220;Bye bye.&#8221; In the photo, the ex-educator was holding a plastic bag and wearing a sweatsuit with a smirk on her face.
Immediately after the shooting, police found multiple weapons inside Moreno Occhipinti&#8217;s car and arrested her on charges of unlawful use of weapons and weapon offense.
The Cook County State&#8217;s Attorney&#8217;s Office, however, declined to proceed with prosecuting the accused, forcing federal authorities to take matters into their own hands.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents nabbed Moreno Occhipinti on May 13.
Matthew Scarpino, Homeland Security Investigations Chicago Special Agent in Charge, called Moreno Occhipinti’s crimes &#8220;calculated and deliberate.&#8221;
Moreno Occhipinti entered the United States in October 2021 under a visa waiver program that allowed her to stay in the country until January 2, 2022, according to DHS. The ex-teacher never left.
The alleged shooters, Ricardo Granadillo Padilla and Edward Martinez Cermeno, were previously deported from the United States, DHS said.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has deported roughly 706,000 illegal immigrants since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, and officials have said the pace of the effort is only picking up steam, according to new data DHS provided to The Daily Wire.
“Bed space and detention centers had to be rebuilt and 10,000 agents hired and Congress wouldn’t pass the big beautiful budget bill for the first six months. Everything is finally in place now so I’m optimistic the numbers will only climb higher from here,” Todd Bensman, who left his role as senior adviser to the ICE Office of the Director last month, recently told The Daily Wire.
In recent days, ICE sources have said they&#8217;re facing renewed pressure to increase arrest numbers.
“It’s wearing everyone out,” said one agency source.
“And at the same time, they want big arrests … but those take time to sit and find and wait. No vehicle stops too, which is harder. So they want big arrests and numbers at the same time. It’s hard to do both, not enough time or days to do it,” the source said.

Untitled design – 2026-07-24T082508.005

Trump Deports Illegal Immigrant School Teacher Over Ties To Tren de Aragua Mass Shooting

Chicago

Crime

Department of Homeland Security

deportation

Illegal Immigration

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Shooting

The Trump administration has now deported over 1,000,000 illegal immigrants from the United States, but roughly a third of those were recent border-crossers who were turned back home, according to new data obtained by The Daily Wire.
The total removals touted by the Trump administration don&#8217;t just include deportations carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), but also account for migrants turned away at the border by Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Since President Donald Trump&#8217;s return to the White House, ICE has deported roughly 706,000 of the one million total, while CBP has removed around 323,000 others, according to the data provided by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Additionally, the Coast Guard removed roughly 900 illegal immigrants.
Todd Bensman, who recently left his role as senior adviser to the ICE Office of the Director, said he doesn&#8217;t believe Trump administration officials are fully satisfied with the numbers.
&#8220;I don’t think anyone in the administration is thrilled with these numbers over 18 months given that 200,000-plus a month were pouring over the border for four years straight. But people have to remember that Biden left America’s deportation infrastructure in ruins as it retreated,&#8221; Bensman told The Daily Wire.
Still, Bensman, who is now serving as a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, said he&#8217;s optimistic the numbers will shoot up with fewer bureaucratic hurdles in place.
&#8220;Bed space and detention centers had to be rebuilt and 10,000 agents hired and Congress wouldn’t pass the big beautiful budget bill for the first six months. Everything is finally in place now so I’m optimistic the numbers will only climb higher from here,&#8221; he said.
Other former immigration officials who support the president&#8217;s plan say he&#8217;s falling short and that the claim of one million deportations is misleading.
&#8220;People see one big number and think it&#8217;s one operation. It&#8217;s three operations rolled into one. ICE works the interior, CBP works the border, and the Coast Guard works on the water,&#8221; Scott Mechkowski, former ICE New York field office deputy director, said.
Mark Morgan, former acting CBP commissioner, said outright that &#8220;mass deportations are not happening.&#8221;
Morgan and Mechkowski are part of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-admin-faces-pushback-from-conservative-allies-on-deportation-data?author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=8&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Admin+Faces+Pushback+From+Conservative+Allies+On+Deportation+Data">Oversight Project</a>, a nonprofit group that is advocating for a “mass deportation” and is suing the Trump administration over its failure to respond to outstanding Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for deportation data. The conservative group argues that the Trump administration may have inflated its deportation statistics.
&#8220;Mass deportation is ICE,&#8221; Morgan said, adding that the removals should only account for &#8220;the people that are already in the United States being removed&#8221; and &#8220;not border security.&#8221;
Morgan likened Trump officials&#8217; touting of one million deportations to the Obama administration&#8217;s misleading deportation data strategy.
Under then-President Barack Obama, nicknamed &#8220;the deporter-in-chief,&#8221; deportation figures largely accounted for recent border crossers who were quickly turned back.
Border returns accounted for 70% of all deportations in fiscal year 2013, <a href="https://www.migrationpolicy.org/publication/deportation-and-discretion-reviewing-record-and-options-change?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Migration Policy Institute. In fiscal year 2016, 85% of all <a href="https://www.migrationpolicy.org/journal/policy-beat/obama-record-deportations-deporter-chief-or-not?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">deportations</a> were immediate returns of border crossers.
&#8220;This is exactly what Obama did,&#8221; Morgan said. &#8220;Obama, leading up to the first election, he wanted to appear a little bit tough &#8230; He was combining what ICE and CBP were doing. When somebody comes to the border and they&#8217;re put through voluntary removal, expedited removal, and they&#8217;re not handed over to ICE, that&#8217;s not a deportation.&#8221;
On Friday, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said 1.4 million illegal immigrants have self-deported, either on their own or through the Trump administration&#8217;s CBP Home app, which pays for their trip home and provides a $2,600 &#8220;exit bonus.&#8221; Self-deportations are separate from the data provided by DHS.
The pace of the Trump administration&#8217;s effort is only expected to pick up with renewed pressure on ICE officers across the country to increase arrest numbers, according to agency sources.
&#8220;It&#8217;s wearing everyone out,&#8221; said one agency source.
&#8220;And at the same time, they want big arrests &#8230; but those take time to sit and find and wait. No vehicle stops too, which is harder. So they want big arrests and numbers at the same time. It&#8217;s hard to do both, not enough time or days to do it,&#8221; the source said.

COSTA RICA-US-MIGRATION-DEPORTED

EXCLUSIVE: Trump Passes Major Deportation Milestone, But There’s More To The Story

Donald Trump

Immigration

Markwayne Mullin

mass deportation

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

An illegal immigrant with a criminal past is accused of killing three people in a hit-and-run crash in Salisbury, North Carolina, on Saturday evening, The Daily Wire has learned.
Javiel Pena Sola, who hails from El Salvador, allegedly struck the victims&#8217; vehicle before attempting to flee the scene, authorities said. A police K-9 unit was able to track Sola down and take him into custody.
Two of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene, while the third succumbed to injuries after being airlifted from the crash site.
Quindel Woods, whose home is near the crash site, described the chilling moment he heard screaming when the crash occurred.
&#8220;They pulled the man out and as they pulled him out, he started screaming,&#8221; Woods said.
Authorities found Sola&#8217;s car in a nearby creek, <a href="https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/started-screaming-more-charges-expected-salisbury-crash-that-killed-3/FS2TVJZQGFGTNKK6TDTF2P7EDI/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to WSOC-TV.
Sola, 42, claimed that he snuck across the Arizona border in 2002, the Department of Homeland Security told The Daily Wire.
The illegal immigrant went on to receive convictions for reckless endangerment, failure to stop after an accident involving damage to attended vehicle, and driving without a license in Maryland in 2015, according to DHS. He also had a prior arrest for escaping from custody.
Authorities in Baltimore handed Sola to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after his jailbreak in March 2016, DHS said. The Obama administration released him from a federal immigration detention center two months later.
The reason for his past release from ICE detention is unclear.
ICE lodged a detainer Wednesday with local authorities in North Carolina, asking them to transfer Sola to federal immigration authorities if he is released from local custody.
“This criminal illegal alien from El Salvador is facing felony charges after a hit-and-run that killed three people in North Carolina,” Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement Wednesday.
“His criminal history includes prior convictions in 2015 for hit-and-run, reckless endangerment, and driving without a license. Although ICE had arrested him in 2016, the Obama Administration RELEASED him into American communities. These deaths were 100% preventable. Open borders and sanctuary policies have deadly consequences,&#8221; Bis said.
Sola now faces three counts of felony hit-and-run involving serious injury or death. More charges are expected in the case, WSOC-TV reported.
The names of the victims have yet to be released to the public as authorities ensure proper notification to their families.

Untitled design – 2026-07-22T115634.019

EXCLUSIVE: Illegal Immigrant With Rap Sheet Accused Of Killing 3 In Hit-And-Run Crash

An illegal immigrant with a rap sheet is accused of murdering an elderly veteran outside his Utah home.
Army and Air Force veteran James Randell “Randy” Witten, 71, was hanging up decorations on his porch in Davis County, Utah, in May when Axel Eduardo Chavez-Marroquin, 24, allegedly drove up and fatally shot him from behind, <a href="https://www.ksl.com/article/51596068/newly-unsealed-charges-say-west-point-veterans-doorbell-camera-recorded-the-murder" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to local news outlet KSL.
The accused &#8220;leapt out of the front passenger seat and moved towards James, firing approximately 10 rounds and killing James from behind,&#8221; KSL reported, citing charging documents. Chavez-Marroquin then returned to his car and sped away.
Police received reports of a car with something orange covering its license plate driving &#8220;erratically&#8221; nearby shortly after the shooting, the local outlet reported. One witness reported seeing a passenger tossing donuts, a beanie, a bandana, and gloves out of the vehicle.
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<div id="attachment_1139559" style="width: 250px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1139559" class="size-full wp-image-1139559" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Untitled-design-2026-07-21T100020.837.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="240" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Untitled-design-2026-07-21T100020.837.jpg 240w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Untitled-design-2026-07-21T100020.837-150x150.jpg 150w" sizes=" (max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px" />DHS</div>
Surveillance footage showed a passenger exiting the vehicle and ripping off the orange tape concealing the license plate before the car headed into Las Vegas hours after the shooting, according to KSL.
Authorities in Nevada located the vehicle on June 16 with Chavez-Marroquin inside and arrested the illegal immigrant. He was transferred to the Davis County Jail in Utah on June 29.
Chavez-Marroquin, who hails from El Salvador, crossed the California border illegally in 2021 before the Biden administration released him into the country, <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2026/07/20/ice-lodges-arrest-detainer-criminal-illegal-alien-arrested-murdering-veteran-utah" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The illegal immigrant received a conviction for domestic violence in Santa Ana, California, in 2024, DHS said. Authorities also arrested him for domestic violence in Laguna Niguel, California, in 2025.
In both cases, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged detainers with authorities in California, who released him from custody under local sanctuary policies, according to DHS.
Chavez-Marroquin arrived in West Point, Utah, from Nevada just eight hours before the shooting and left immediately after carrying out the attack, authorities said.
ICE has lodged a detainer seeking Chavez-Marroquin&#8217;s arrest for the third time following his latest crime, the agency said Monday.
In his latest case, prosecutors have argued that he&#8217;s a flight risk given his ties to El Salvador and his status as a fugitive from California, where he was on probation, according to KSL.
“This monster is charged with murdering a 71-year-old Army and Air Force veteran in Utah. California sanctuary politicians RELEASED this criminal from jail TWICE after arrests for domestic violence. Following his release, he went on to commit this heinous murder,” Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement.
“This illegal alien should’ve never been allowed on our streets, and James Witten should still be alive today. ICE is now asking officials in Utah to commit to not releasing this criminal from jail and to work with ICE so that we can remove him from our country. Reckless sanctuary policies in states like California are putting American lives at risk,&#8221; Bis added.
The suspect is charged with murder with a dangerous weapons enhancement, discharge of a firearm causing serious injury, obstruction of justice, and dangerous weapon conduct by a restricted person, according to KSL.

Untitled design – 2026-07-21T092122.341

Illegal Immigrant Convict Accused Of Gunning Down Elderly Veteran

Border

Veterans

President Donald Trump told ICE to resume vehicle stops after The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-ice-orders-agents-to-cease-all-vehicle-stops-after-recent-shootings?author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=EXCLUSIVE%3A+ICE+Orders+Agents+To+Cease+All+Vehicle+Stops+After+Recent+Shootings">first reported</a> on Tuesday that the agency paused the practice in the wake of multiple deadly shootings. 
Trump said in a Wednesday morning Truth Social <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116923585931908111">post</a> that the stops were necessary to implement his mass deportation agenda. He added that giving up the vehicle stops, where many immigration arrests are made, played right into the hands of the “radical Left.” 
“The Open Border Policy of Sleepy Joe Biden allowed 25,000,000 people to pour into our Country, unchecked and unvetted,” the president said. “Many were Criminals, and we have to get them out. In order to do this, we must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP! Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal’s hands.”
Trump then said ICE should continue making vehicle stops and called for more arrests. 
“The Radical Left Dumocrats would like to see this done, but it won’t happen on my watch. I.C.E., be judicious, fair and smart, and go back and do your very important job,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Keep those Crime Stat Records coming! Remember, you are loved and respected in America.&#8221; 
The pause came after shootings involving ICE officers pulling over vehicles during immigration enforcement operations in Texas and Maine. Three Department of Homeland Security sources told The Daily Wire they received a directive stipulating “no more vehicle stops for now.” 
Many ICE officers were upset by the pause because agents prefer to make arrests during traffic stops and not at homes. Arrests in a home require a judicial warrant and can mean the target has more access to weapons. 
“Numbers are going down, we can’t do sh*t,” one agency source <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-ice-orders-agents-to-cease-all-vehicle-stops-after-recent-shootings?author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=EXCLUSIVE%3A+ICE+Orders+Agents+To+Cease+All+Vehicle+Stops+After+Recent+Shootings">told</a> The Daily Wire. 
Trump administration border czar Tom Homan said Tuesday that the pause would be “short term” while more training was done. 
&#8220;I think what they&#8217;re doing is taking the pause to make sure that, number one, the ICE officers have everything they need to stay safe because vehicle attacks are up 3,400%, and they&#8217;re going to make sure, is the training sufficient? Did anything go wrong? I&#8217;m confident they&#8217;re going to get back to their policy of vehicle stops,&#8221; he said during an interview on Fox News. 
The pause was implemented after the shooting in Maine of a 26-year-old Colombian who the Department of Homeland Security said “attempted to flee” and left the officer “fearing for public safety.”

US-IRAQ-POLITICS-DIPLOMACY-TRUMP

Trump Sounds Off On ICE’s New Traffic Stop Directive

Federal immigration officers across the country have been told to stop pulling over vehicles after recent shootings in Maine and Texas.
Three Homeland Security sources told The Daily Wire Tuesday that they were told &#8220;no more vehicle stops for now.&#8221; The new directive has the potential to massively impact ICE&#8217;s ability to make arrests, as officers often prefer to catch targets during traffic stops rather than at suspects&#8217; homes, where illegal immigrants could have access to weapons. Officers also need a judicial warrant to enter a suspect&#8217;s home without their permission, but no such restriction exists for traffic stops.
&#8220;Numbers are going down, we can&#8217;t do sh*t,&#8221; an agency source fumed.
An ICE spokesperson said the agency is &#8220;always evaluating our procedures to keep our officers safe and criminals off our streets,&#8221; adding that &#8220;We will not disclose or discuss law enforcement tactics.&#8221;
The latest change provides limited exceptions when officers have a criminal warrant, with the agency saying that they must work with outside agencies to pull over the target.
The pause comes a day after a 26-year-old Colombian man was fatally shot by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers as they were trying to pull over his vehicle in Biddeford, Maine.
Maine Sen. Angus King (I-ME) said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told him the man who was shot was not the person ICE was trying to arrest, according to CNN. King was walking back a previous statement where he claimed that Mullin said the deceased man was ICE&#8217;s target.
In a statement Monday, ICE said the driver, who was shot and killed, &#8220;attempted to flee&#8221; and that the officer who fired their weapon was &#8220;fearing for public safety.&#8221;
“The driver of the vehicle was struck, and emergency services were immediately contacted. He passed away from his injuries,” ICE said.
Unlike during prior traffic stops-turned-shootings, ICE did not claim that the man shot and killed by officers tried to hit them with his vehicle, and emphasized that the incident is still under investigation. The deceased man&#8217;s identity has yet to be released.
The Biddeford Police Department and the FBI responded to the scene, while DHS&#8217; Office of Inspector General was “notified&#8221; of the incident, ICE said.
“This is a developing situation, and we will update the public when more information is available,” ICE said.
Last Tuesday, an ICE officer in Houston fatally shot Mexican illegal immigrant Lorenzo Salgado Araujo while conducting a vehicle stop. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Araujo wasn&#8217;t their original target, but claimed that he &#8220;weaponized&#8221; his vehicle and tried to run over an officer, prompting one to fire &#8220;in self-defense.&#8221;
Anti-ICE protesters have taken to the streets in Texas and Maine to express their outrage over the latest shootings. Demonstrators attempted to storm Sen. Susan Collins’ (R-ME) office Monday, shouting “vote her out.”

Officials identify man killed by ICE in Maine, and security footage shows shooting’s aftermath

EXCLUSIVE: ICE Orders Agents To Cease All Vehicle Stops After Recent Shootings

Minnesota officials recommended a pardon for a child rapist in a failed attempt to shield him from deportation, according to state documents. 
The Minnesota Clemency Review Commission voted 4-2 to recommend a pardon for 42-year-old Laotian national Tou Lue Vang, who was convicted for repeatedly sexually assaulting a girl beginning when she was just 10 years old. Despite its recommendation and a pardon from Governor Tim Walz, Secretary of State Marco Rubio <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/marco-rubio-just-dropped-the-hammer-after-tim-walzs-pardon-of-an-illegal-immigrant-child-sex-offender?author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Team+Drops+The+Hammer+After+Tim+Walz%E2%80%99s+Illegal+Alien+Pardon">announced</a> Friday that Vang had been deported. 
Members of the commission claimed Vang had been rehabilitated and pointed to the possibility he would be deported when pushing for a pardon, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/exposed-docs-reveal-why-tim-walz-board-awarded-repeat-child-rapist-pardon-no-future">according</a> to documents reviewed by Fox News. Beginning in 2002, Vang repeatedly had sexual intercourse with a young girl over a two year period starting when he was 18 and she was 10. 
&#8220;Despite the extraordinary severity of the underlying offense, there is substantial evidence of rehabilitation, remorse and acceptance of responsibility,” claimed clemency commissioner and University of Minnesota law professor Perry Moriearty. Moriearty added that Vang &#8220;is facing deportation&#8221; and said that the &#8220;victim supports” the pardon, the documents viewed by Fox News show. 
The Daily Wire reached out to the Minnesota Clemency Review Commission for comment.
When arrested, he claimed it was part of his culture and said the victim should be charged as well. &#8220;I made a mistake, but this is a minor thing. It is a cultural thing in Thailand to marry and have sex with girls as young as 12,” he reportedly told police. 
For the crime, Vang spent just eight months at the Ramsey County, Minnesota, Correctional Workhouse and was given 30 years of supervised probation. The family of the victim pressured her to refuse to cooperate with law enforcement, according to prosecutors. 
Other members of the commission noted that Vang noted his fears of deportation and that he now has a large family. 
&#8220;The applicant stated the need for clemency related to immigration issues,” said commissioner Artika Roller, the executive director of Cornerstone, a <a href="https://cornerstonemn.org/about/leadership/">group</a> that purports to support victims of sexual violence. Roller supported the pardon. 
The Daily Wire also reached out to Cornerstone for comment. 
&#8220;Very tough case but the kids not having a father is not in the best interest of society,&#8221; said commission member and Mounds View Mayor Zach Lindstrom.
&#8220;The victim supports this pardon. His [Vang’s] wife stayed and has forgiven. He also [has] immigration concerns. He has remorse and was discharged from probation,” wrote commissioner Nadine Graves. &#8220;He retracted his prior statement about this being a result of culture. He admits this was wrong then and will always be wrong.&#8221;
Tami McConkey, director of the Victim Witness &amp; Postconviction Justice Division in Ramsey County, urged the commission to not recommend a pardon. 
&#8220;While Mr. Vang expresses shame and regret about what his children experience when then [sic] learn of the offense, he does not share any thoughts or insight about what the victim must have gone through,” she said. 
Walz, Democrat Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson ultimately accepted the recommendation and pardoned Vang.
Vang first came to the United States in 1994 and was given legal status by the Clinton administration, according to the Department of Homeland Security. An immigration judge issued Vang a final deportation order on October 31, 2006, following his conviction.
“Americans must never be forced by their elected leaders to live alongside foreign sex criminals who have no right to begin with to reside in our country,” Rubio said Friday when he announced Vang’s deportation. “This administration will always stand with the American people and defend them from violent criminals.”

JD Vance And Tim Walz Face Off In Vice Presidential Debate In New York

Read The Insane Argument Officials Made Against Deporting Child Rapist Pardoned By Tim Walz

Illegal Immigation

Marco Rubio

Minnesota

Pardon

Sex Crimes

Tim Walz

The White House is renewing the pressure on federal immigration agents to massively increase arrest numbers.
Multiple Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sources told The Daily Wire that they&#8217;re back to working seven days a week as the Trump administration pushes for higher arrest numbers. ICE made more than 10,000 arrests during a recent five-day period, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/01/us/politics/ice-immigrant-arrests-surge.html?unlocked_article_code=1.ulA.4-MU.0gsS0EAOfQGH&amp;smid=nytcore-ios-share" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> Wednesday.
Over the weekend, ICE agents across the country were &#8220;called into work on a mandatory 100% manpower work week surge effort,&#8221; one agency source said, adding that the &#8220;huge effort&#8221; was &#8220;pushed super last minute, destroying officers&#8217; personal lives in the meantime.&#8221;
The all-gas, no-brakes approach is &#8220;exhausting,&#8221; another agency source said.
<div id="attachment_1127611" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1127611" class="wp-image-1127611 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-634417434-2-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-634417434-2-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-634417434-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-634417434-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-634417434-2.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)</div>
The goal of the new effort is to sustain 2,000 arrests per day, up from 1,000 earlier this year, according to The New York Times.
A White House official confirmed that &#8220;numbers&#8221; are &#8220;increasing&#8221; as a &#8220;result of continued work by the administration on many different fronts.&#8221;
&#8220;Of course, the White House works with their partners at different agencies to ensure the President’s agenda is being enacted. At the same time, the Secure America Act guaranteed funding for 3 years, hiring has continued to increase, the immigration courts are more streamlined, and ICE is operating more efficiently every day,&#8221; the official said.
ICE was instructed to focus on increasing arrest numbers under the leadership of then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, leading to aggressive and flashy sweeps across cities like Minneapolis, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
When Markwayne Mullin took the helm at DHS, he indicated there would be a softer approach to how the agency carries out its mass deportation plan. The shift came after two fatal shootings of anti-ICE protesters in Minneapolis by federal immigration agents.
&#8220;We&#8217;re still enforcing immigration laws, we&#8217;re still deporting illegals that shouldn&#8217;t be here, we&#8217;re still going after the worst of the worst, but we&#8217;re doing it in a more quiet way because my goal in six months is to not have DHS on the lead story everyday,&#8221; Mullin said in April.
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Markwayne Mullin says his leadership style at DHS entails doing deportations &#8220;in a more quiet way.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/GZ5oe82hjg">pic.twitter.com/GZ5oe82hjg</a>
— Jennie Taer (@JennieSTaer) <a href="https://x.com/JennieSTaer/status/2044801709151515096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 16, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
During a press conference Wednesday, Mullin <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj_pqoUGWpU&amp;source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&amp;embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.dailywire.com%2F" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that arrests and deportations are surging.
&#8220;We&#8217;re seeing our arrest numbers come up, we&#8217;re seeing our deportation numbers continue to increase,&#8221; Mullin said. &#8220;Right now, we&#8217;re deporting on average over 3,000 individuals, actually the average has been for several weeks now over 3,200 individuals a day, 70% of those individuals we&#8217;re deporting have outstanding criminal charges on them or they&#8217;ve already been charged with a felony.&#8221;
&#8220;So when we go after the worst of the worst, which is exactly what we&#8217;re doing, we&#8217;re saving lives,&#8221; Mullin said.
In a statement, DHS said &#8220;since day one&#8221; they&#8217;ve been &#8220;delivering on President Trump’s promise to the American people to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens including murderers, rapists, pedophiles, gang members, and terrorists.&#8221;
&#8220;Nearly 70% of ICE arrests are of illegal aliens charged or convicted of a crime in the U.S. More than 3 million illegal aliens are out of the country and counting. Our message is clear: if you come to our country illegally, we will find you, we will arrest you, and we will deport you,&#8221; an agency spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, ICE&#8217;s detention population increased by 4,000 detainees with the facilities holding more than 63,000 illegal immigrants as of Tuesday, The New York Times reported.
ICE leadership has applauded agency personnel for supporting the latest effort.
“I want to personally thank each of you for your extraordinary efforts this past weekend,” Marcos Charles, Executive Associate Director of ICE&#8217;s Enforcement and Removal Operations, wrote this week in an email to agency staff, according to The New York Times.
“Through your dedication, professionalism, and unwavering commitment to our mission, enforcement and removal operations achieved remarkable operational results,&#8221; Charles wrote.
Last Year, White House adviser Stephen Miller instituted a 3,000 daily arrest quota for ICE, which tanked agency morale.
ICE has since more than doubled its staffing levels by hiring thousands of new officers. The agency has also received a flood of billions of dollars in funding.

ICE agents raid to arrest illigal immigrants.

White House Renews Pressure On ICE To Turbocharge Arrests

Deportations

White House

An illegal immigrant the federal government was supposed to deport nearly three decades ago allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl in New York as she was walking home, The Daily Wire has learned.
Aureliano Antonio Melendez Reyes, who hails from El Salvador, allegedly approached the teen in Huntington, New York, on June 6 and asked for her phone number, which she refused to hand over, Long Island&#8217;s News12 <a href="https://longisland.news12.com/2026/06/16/man-indicted-for-raping-minor-in-huntington-alley-as-she-walked-home/5DxbRIB2IlfrNSd2gEHR8U" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. The 59-year-old then allegedly forced her into an alley before sexually assaulting her.
The teenage girl was able to break free from Reyes and managed to scale a tall fence while partially clothed before calling 911, according to the local news outlet. The accused rapist continued to pursue the teenager while she was on the phone with authorities.
Police arrived at the scene, where they arrested the alleged predator.
The illegal immigrant snuck across the border without detection at an unknown time, the Department of Homeland Security told The Daily Wire. He received a deportation order in 1998.
“This monster is charged with rape, sexual abuse, and endangering the welfare of a child after he raped a 16-year-old girl who was walking home,” Acting Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement. “This sexual predator NEVER should have been in our country and able to prey on this innocent girl.&#8221;
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged a detainer against Reyes, asking local authorities to hand over the suspect following his prosecution, DHS said.
Reyes faces up to 25 years behind bars if convicted on the rape charges, according to News12.
It is unlikely that local authorities will honor ICE&#8217;s detainer due to sanctuary laws. New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul recently signed new anti-ICE legislation to prevent local law enforcement agencies from entering agreements with federal immigration authorities.
The legislation also seeks to ban ICE agents from wearing masks and entering churches, schools, and other sensitive locations.
Between January 20, 2025, and December 1, 2025, local authorities in New York released 6,947 criminal illegal immigrants onto the streets, according to DHS. Their crimes account for 29 homicides, 2,509 assaults, 199 burglaries, 305 robberies, 392 dangerous drug offenses, 300 weapons offenses, and 207 sexual predatory offenses.
Bis called out &#8220;Hochul and her fellow sanctuary politicians in New York,&#8221; asking them to honor ICE&#8217;s detainer against Reyes by committing to &#8220;not releasing this criminal illegal alien from jail and to turn him over to ICE.&#8221;
&#8220;New York sanctuary politicians must not release criminals from jail into New York communities,&#8221; she said.

Untitled design – 2026-06-18T123706.340

EXCLUSIVE: Illegal Immigrant With Deportation Order Accused Of Raping 16-Year-Old Girl While She Was Walking Home

New York

An ICE officer saved a 6-year-old child from drowning by jumping into a Florida pool and performing emergency CPR.
The Department of Homeland Security said this week that Tampa ICE officer Gregory Simmonds saved a child last month who he found floating unconscious in a pool in Pasco County, Florida. After pulling the child from the pool, Simmonds gave the child CPR until he regained consciousness. 
“This officer swiftly sprung to action and delivered life-saving medical care to this 6-year-old who drowned,” said Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis. “Our agents truly are the best of the best. They put their lives on the line to arrest the worst of the worst. Instead of demonizing ICE law enforcement, sanctuary politicians should be thanking them for removing criminals from their communities.&#8221;
<div style="max-width: 728px; margin: 0 auto;"><iframe style="aspect-ratio: 9/16; max-width: 220px; display: flex; justify-content: center; width: 100%; margin: 20px auto 5px; border: 0;" src="https://player.mux.com/WgD02c01M4QTj200cZ01nB3txCO2v2DOhQHY?metadata-video-content-type=embed_video&amp;metadata-video-id=a4950040-5077-4278-9812-60933b1f3579&amp;metadata-video-stream-type=on-demand&amp;metadata-video-title=2026-6-18%20ICE%20agent%20saves%20kid%20in%20pool%20&amp;poster=https%3A%2F%2Fdailywireplus-v2.imgix.net%2Fimages%2Fembedded-videos%2Fa0cd56f4-c78f-4ed2-a4d2-a657b90722f6.jpg&amp;autoplay=false&amp;accent-color=%23DB3D3B&amp;primary-color=%23ffffff&amp;secondary-color=%23000000" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div>
Local authorities praised Simmonds for saving the child’s life.
“Due to his quick thinking, decisive actions and willingness to place himself into action during a critical incident, the child survived and is expected to make a full recovery,” said Corporal J. Leathers of the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office. “His actions directly contributed to saving the life of the child and reflect exceptional courage and selflessness.”
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1118687" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-18-at-8.21.10-AM.png" alt="" width="935" height="498" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-18-at-8.21.10-AM.png 935w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-18-at-8.21.10-AM-300x160.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Screenshot-2026-06-18-at-8.21.10-AM-768x409.png 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 935px) 100vw, 935px" /></div>
The incident occurred on May 16. 
In a press release highlighting Simmonds’ actions, the Department of Homeland Security noted other examples of ICE officers taking heroic action. 
In March, an ICE officer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-ice-agent-saves-baby-who-stopped-breathing-in-tsa-line">performed</a> the Heimlich maneuver on a 1-year-old child who experienced a medical emergency and stopped breathing while at JFK International Airport in New York. The child started breathing again after the actions of the ICE officer. 
Another incident occurred in February when two off-duty officers performed CPR on a 4-year-old child found unconscious in a pool in Minnesota. That child eventually regained consciousness. 
ICE has faced increasing public protests across the country from leftist activists attempting to disrupt the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration. Anti-ICE riots have broken out in California, Minnesota, and New York over detentions of illegal immigrants.

Lane swimming pool. Closeup of the row of lanes in the swimming pool

WATCH: ICE Officer Dives Into Pool To Rescue Drowning 6-Year-Old

Florida

The man accused of being the ringleader of a group planning to attack the UFC Freedom 250 White House event last weekend is an illegal immigrant from Mexico. 
Abraham Alvarez, who the Justice Department said was “responsible for planning, organizing, and directing the planned attack,” overstayed his visa after being brought into the country as a child. He was first granted deportation relief under former President Barack Obama in 2014, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-ufc-terror-plot-ringleader-mexican-illegal-immigrant-dhs-confirms">reported</a> Thursday. 
Alvarez came on a B2 visa, according to the Department of Homeland Security. A B2 visa typically is given for tourism or medical reasons and the one issued to Alvarez expired in 2001.
<div style="max-width: 728px; margin: 0 auto;"><iframe style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; max-width: 100%; width: 100%; margin: 20px auto 5px; border: 0;" src="https://player.mux.com/00T00DoxJgLnSAQStOdA2yNFRAdCXG2O79?metadata-video-content-type=embed_video&amp;metadata-video-id=22ee7535-ce3c-4786-b286-1ff8dea5879a&amp;metadata-video-stream-type=on-demand&amp;metadata-video-title=2026-6-16%20White%20House%20UFC%20drone%20plot%20&amp;poster=https%3A%2F%2Fdailywireplus-v2.imgix.net%2Fimages%2Fembedded-videos%2F7a9ad121-a12a-429e-9d1d-74f079d6d439.jpg&amp;autoplay=false&amp;accent-color=%23DB3D3B&amp;primary-color=%23ffffff&amp;secondary-color=%23000000" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div>
&nbsp;
&#8220;This illegal alien from Mexico should never have been allowed in our country,&#8221; DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News. &#8220;He was the ringleader of a failed terror attack targeting UFC Freedom 250 at the White House.&#8221;
&#8220;He will face justice and swiftly be removed from our country,&#8221; she added of Alvarez.
The alleged plot would have involved using explosive drones to cause panic at the UFC event before snipers opened fire. Alavarez has been charged with conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States.
Alvarez wanted to target President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and trillionaire Elon Musk, according to the criminal complaint from the FBI. Neither Musk nor Netanyahu were at the event.
The FBI said that Alvarez went by the moniker &#8220;Shepherd&#8221; in a group chat where the attack was planned.
&#8220;This is the best action I see. Position your teams in the purple dots (counter sniper and drones) Long range (circled area) (great shot) Easy out into the river,&#8221; Shepherd posted on June 10 alongside maps of the D.C. area, according to the FBI.
Tycen Proper, a 19-year-old charged in the attack, allegedly identified “Shepherd” as “the primary individual involved with planning” and “directly stated that Shepherd was the leader of the group and described him as aggressive in tactical planning.”
“From his home here in Nebraska, Alvarez allegedly directed and recruited others across the country to conduct a horrific attack against government officials in a mass casualty event. Our team worked around the clock to locate and apprehend Alvarez, take him into custody, and collect crucial evidence,” said FBI special agent Eugene Kowel on Tuesday. 
This is a breaking story. Refresh for updates.

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Illegal Immigrant Masterminded UFC White House Drone Attack Plot, DHS Says

Terrorism

Federal immigration authorities detained dozens of workers and arrested company officials during a major raid at a South Carolina manufacturing plant this week, the culmination of what state officials described as a years-long investigation into the employment of illegal immigrants.
The operation, <a href="https://www.foxcarolina.com/2026/06/04/ag-48-detained-by-ice-operation-burnstein-von-seelen-6-indicted/">dubbed</a> “Operation Ghost Story,” targeted Burnstein von Seelen Precision Castings in Abbeville, a city roughly 86 miles from Columbia. Authorities said 48 workers were detained and are being investigated for potential immigration violations. 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
🚨HOLY CRAP!!!
An absolutely MASSIVE operation is underway as ICE has SURROUNDED a casting company in rural South Carolina.
A criminal search warrant is currently being executed for the alleged hiring of illegal aliens&#8230;
There are literally HUNDREDS of people in handcuffs!!! <a href="https://t.co/lcBLPj7cKn">pic.twitter.com/lcBLPj7cKn</a>
— Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) <a href="https://x.com/mattvanswol/status/2062293719945019527?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Officials also announced criminal charges against plant manager Christopher Ramey and human resources coordinator Sandy Willis. The two are accused of conspiracy, identity fraud related to employment, and forgery. 

Four additional defendants were charged with supplying fake identification documents that workers used to obtain employment. One of the defendants, Jose Luis Aguilar Mejia, is currently at large and wanted by authorities.
ICE partnered with the Department of Homeland Security, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the Abbeville and Greenwood County Sheriff&#8217;s Offices, the Eighth Circuit Solicitor’s Office, and other state and local agencies in carrying out the operation.
South Carolina Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark A. Keel <a href="https://www.wyff4.com/article/ice-raid-employees-arrested-south-carolina-business/71493075">called</a> this raid “the direct result of an exhaustive, years-long investigation.”  
 
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said the operation demonstrates the state&#8217;s commitment to enforcing immigration and identity fraud laws.
“If you are unlawfully aiding illegal immigrants in South Carolina, you are going to be investigated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Wilson stated in a press conference. “If you are taking advantage of hard-working Americans, stealing their identities, and are intentionally ignoring your responsibilities as an employer in an effort to circumvent the law, we are coming for you.”
Burnstein von Seelen Precision Castings manufactures precision pieces for major corporations such as General Electric, General Dynamics, and Siemens.

Immigration Advocates Demonstrate And Clash With Officers Outside Delaney Hall Detention Facility In Newark

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