The Trump administration has intensified its mass deportation efforts, arresting over 595,000 illegal immigrants and deporting around 605,000 since Inauguration Day. These operations have brought attention to several high-profile cases involving serious crimes by undocumented individuals. Officials describe these as examples of the 'worst of the worst' among those in the country illegally.
The Trump administration's deportation campaign, launched after Inauguration Day, has resulted in the arrest of 595,000 illegal immigrants and the deportation of approximately 605,000 others. This initiative has uncovered cases of individuals with extensive criminal records who had evaded prior removal.
One prominent case involves Kilmar Abrego Garcia, identified as an alleged MS-13 gang member in a 2019 Maryland police report and a 2018 court filing. Deported to El Salvador in March due to an administrative error, he was returned to the U.S. in June on human smuggling charges stemming from a 2022 Tennessee traffic stop. During that incident, officers found him driving eight passengers from Texas to Maryland without luggage, suspecting human trafficking, though he was released with a citation for an expired license. Garcia also faces accusations of domestic violence, with his wife applying for protective orders twice, yet she has advocated for him. Democrats, including Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen who visited him in detention, have portrayed Garcia as a 'Maryland man' in opposition to the deportations.
Another individual, Ian Roberts from Guyana, served as superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools in Iowa until his arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in September, despite an active deportation order. Roberts entered the U.S. as a tourist in 1994 and obtained a student visa in 1999. His record includes 1996 charges in New York for narcotics possession with intent to sell, forgery devices, and forged instruments; a dismissed 1998 vehicle misuse charge; a 2012 Maryland conviction for reckless driving and speeding; and 2020-2022 weapon possession charges in Pennsylvania, where he was convicted of unlawful possession of a loaded firearm. Denied a green card four times, his work permit expired in December 2020, yet he was hired three years later. He failed to appear at his immigration hearing, leading to a deportation order.
Harjinder Singh, an Indian national, caused a fatal crash in August on a Florida turnpike by making an illegal U-turn in an 18-wheeler, killing three people. Singh, who failed his commercial driver's license test 10 times before obtaining one in Washington in 2023 and another in California, struggled with English proficiency, answering only 2 of 12 verbal questions correctly post-crash and identifying 1 of 4 traffic signs. Body camera footage from a prior New Mexico speeding ticket showed communication difficulties. The incident prompted a federal crackdown on states issuing such licenses to illegal immigrants.
Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, a Guatemalan deported in 2018, returned illegally and set a sleeping woman, Debrina Kawam, 57, on fire in New York City's subway in December 2023. He watched as she burned to death from a bench, with burns so severe that initial identification was challenging. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited the site, stating on X: "Those who are in this country [illegally] WILL be tracked down, prosecuted and not allowed to return." She added: "If aliens voluntarily leave now, they may have the opportunity to return the right, legal way and live the American dream. If they don’t, they will face the inevitable consequences."
Cory Alvarez, a Haitian migrant under the Biden-era parole program allowing 30,000 monthly entries from Haiti, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, raped a 15-year-old disabled girl in a Massachusetts migrant shelter last year. Convicted in November 2024, he faces at least 10 years in prison. Alvarez lured the victim to his room at the Comfort Inn in Rockland by offering tablet assistance, ignoring her pleas to stop. Arrested on March 14, 2024, he was released on a $500 bond in June despite a federal detainer.
These cases illustrate the administration's focus on removing individuals with criminal histories, amid ongoing debates over immigration enforcement.
