(PHOENIX, AZ) – More than 110 foreign-born criminals currently on probation in Maricopa County have been arrested and now face deportation as a result of a new operation involving the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Maricopa County Adult Probation (ADP). More arrests are anticipated.
 
Among those being targeted are illegal aliens with felony criminal records as well as legal permanent residents of the United States whose crimes make them subject to deportation, such as domestic violence and drug trafficking.  
 
The arrests so far include people on probation for sex offenses, drug crimes, and aliens with prior convictions for violent crimes. The operation began in November 2007, utilizing a number of deputies and agents working throughout the county.
 
“We’re not going to stand by and allow deportable criminals to victimize law abiding members of this community,” said Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.  “If you’re a criminal alien who’s currently on probation, you have two weeks to get your affairs in order and surrender to the Sheriff’s Office Enforcement Support building, or we will track you down and turn you over for deportation.”
 
According to Arpaio, the partnership with ICE and ADP is just one step in addressing the backlog of criminal alien probationers.  The Sheriff also wants to see changes in the local judicial system.
 
ICE officials say their participation in the operation is part of the agency’s Criminal Alien Program, a comprehensive national strategy to identify and remove criminal aliens from the country.
 
“The people we’re targeting in this joint effort are a potential public safety threat,” said Katrina S. Kane, field office director of the ICE office of detention and removal operations. “Targeting criminal aliens in our jails and in our communities is one of ICE’s top enforcement priorities.”
 
Sheriff’s officers have been working with ICE under the 287(g) agreement, which allows deputies to enforce both state and federal immigration laws.  So far, the Sheriff has had 160 officers trained to perform immigration enforcement functions.
 
A press conference will be held on Thursday, February 14, 2008. A display board of the foreign-born probationers arrested in the ongoing operation, as well as details of the enforcement effort, will be outlined at 1:30 PM in the Sheriff’s Training Center Auditorium, at 35th Avenue and Lower Buckeye Roads. Fore more information, email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it