OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – A late September collaboration between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) led to over 100 arrests of illegal aliens, with over 90 of said immigration offenders caught operating a commercial vehicle with an issued CDL.
From September 22nd through the 25th, ICE and OHP conducted a three-day enforcement operation under the agency’s 287(g) program where ICE agents concurrently ran records checks of suspected foreign nationals while OHP were engaged with motorists along I-40 during their regular patrol duties. During the collaborative operation, OHP conducted a total of 520 interactions with motorists, leading to ICE netting 120 arrests for immigration violations.
According to ICE, 91 of the immigration offenders “were operating a commercial motor vehicle with a commercial driver license,” while a majority of the remaining arrestees were secured via passenger vehicle stops by OHP and two others who were reportedly apprehended “from a nearby marijuana grow operation.”
The agency presented a list of the states responsible for issuing the CDLs to the illegal immigrants, with California leading the pack with 44 of them while New York landed in second place with the issuance of 14 CDLs. Countries of origin related to the commercial drivers found that the majority were Indian nationals, comprising 39 of the 91 arrested.
Outside of the CDL component of the operation, a number of arrestees also harbored past convictions of DUI (some of which had multiple convictions of such), illegal reentry, human smuggling, money laundering, assault, and various drug offenses.
ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan issued a statement following the success of the collaborative operation, highlighting the agency’s recent focus on apprehending illegal aliens operating commercial vehicles on American highways.
“ICE’s 287(g) program clearly demonstrates how federal and local law enforcement agencies can work together to make America safe again,” Deputy Director Sheahan stated, adding, “Illegal aliens have no business operating 18 wheelers on America’s highways. Our roads are now safer with these illegal aliens no longer behind the wheel. We encourage more state and local law enforcement to sign 287(g) agreements to help remove public safety threats and receive reimbursement funds available to our law enforcement partners.”
The 287(g) program is a section under the Immigration and Nationality Act which authorizes ICE “to delegate to state and local law enforcement officers the authority to perform specified immigration officer functions under the agency’s direction and oversight.”
From September 22nd through the 25th, ICE and OHP conducted a three-day enforcement operation under the agency’s 287(g) program where ICE agents concurrently ran records checks of suspected foreign nationals while OHP were engaged with motorists along I-40 during their regular patrol duties. During the collaborative operation, OHP conducted a total of 520 interactions with motorists, leading to ICE netting 120 arrests for immigration violations.
According to ICE, 91 of the immigration offenders “were operating a commercial motor vehicle with a commercial driver license,” while a majority of the remaining arrestees were secured via passenger vehicle stops by OHP and two others who were reportedly apprehended “from a nearby marijuana grow operation.”
The agency presented a list of the states responsible for issuing the CDLs to the illegal immigrants, with California leading the pack with 44 of them while New York landed in second place with the issuance of 14 CDLs. Countries of origin related to the commercial drivers found that the majority were Indian nationals, comprising 39 of the 91 arrested.
Outside of the CDL component of the operation, a number of arrestees also harbored past convictions of DUI (some of which had multiple convictions of such), illegal reentry, human smuggling, money laundering, assault, and various drug offenses.
ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan issued a statement following the success of the collaborative operation, highlighting the agency’s recent focus on apprehending illegal aliens operating commercial vehicles on American highways.
“ICE’s 287(g) program clearly demonstrates how federal and local law enforcement agencies can work together to make America safe again,” Deputy Director Sheahan stated, adding, “Illegal aliens have no business operating 18 wheelers on America’s highways. Our roads are now safer with these illegal aliens no longer behind the wheel. We encourage more state and local law enforcement to sign 287(g) agreements to help remove public safety threats and receive reimbursement funds available to our law enforcement partners.”
The 287(g) program is a section under the Immigration and Nationality Act which authorizes ICE “to delegate to state and local law enforcement officers the authority to perform specified immigration officer functions under the agency’s direction and oversight.”
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