Tongan national among 112 arrested in US immigration raid [1]
Friday, July 22, 2016 - 14:42. Updated on Friday, July 22, 2016 - 14:43.
A 46-year-old Tongan man living in California was among 112 people (100 men, 12 women) arrested in an operation by United States law enforcement last week. According to the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E), the four-day operation was targeting “convicted criminal aliens” and that “the arrested were immigrants who were involved in gang activity or had three or more misdemeanor convictions or a conviction for a ‘significant’ misdemeanor.”
A press release from I.C.E stated that the 46-year-old Tongan man had a previous conviction for assault with a deadly weapon and was arrested in the city of Rancho Cucamonga, San Bernardino County. All 112 of those arrested in the operation face deportation from the united states and are now in custody awaiting a hearing before an immigration judge.
The deputy field office director for ICE’s office in Southern California, David Marin told local press “Every single one of these persons came here legally or illegally, and they committed a crime – we’re a part of the community. We want to contribute to public safety.”
“This operation exemplifies ICE’s ongoing commitment to targeting convicted criminals and public safety threats for arrest and removal. … By taking these individuals off our streets and ultimately removing them from the country, we’re making our communities safer for everyone.”
According to I.C.E the nationality of those arrested are as follows: 89 from Mexico, 7 from El Salvador, 5 from Guatemala, 2 from Belize, 2 from Honduras, 2 from Vietnam, and one each from Egypt, the Philippines, Tonga, the United Kingdom and Azerbaijan.