ICE Fugitive Operations Teams arrest more than 30,000 in FY2007

Officer teams and more efficient data contribute to decline in number of criminal aliens, immigration fugitives

WASHINGTON, D.C - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced today that their teams of officers who track down criminal aliens and immigration fugitives arrested almost twice as many in fiscal year 2007 than in the previous year. For the first time since records have been kept, the nation's fugitive alien population is on the decline.

In the last fiscal year, which ended on Sept. 30, ICE Fugitive Operations Teams arrested 30,408 individuals - up from 15,462 arrests made in FY 2006. One of the reasons for the increase in arrests is the deployment of dozens more teams across the country. ICE met its goal of deploying 75 teams by the end of FY 2007; up from 52 active teams in FY2006.

The Fugitive Operations Program's rapid growth has spurred its success. However, better coordination of information from state and local law enforcement and more efficient data collection and dissemination have also contributed greatly. As of October 1, 2007, ICE's fugitive case backlog consisted of less than 595,000 fugitive aliens, which is approximately 38,000 fewer fugitives than the population recorded at the same time last year. That number continues to decrease.

"The growing number of arrests made by the ICE Fugitive Operations Teams should serve as a deterrent to people attempting to side-step our nation's laws," said Julie L. Myers, Assistant Secretary for ICE. "We kept our promise to bolster the number of teams this past year and we continue to improve our ability to identify and apprehend individuals who pose a serious threat to our communities or choose to ignore our immigration laws."