The Trump administration’s mass deportation effort has picked up speed with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers making a record 50,925 arrests in August, according to data the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shared with The Daily Wire.
August marked the third straight month of record arrests for ICE and the highest monthly total in the agency’s history. The agency made 50,208 arrests in July and roughly 43,000 arrests in June.
In a statement shared with The Daily Wire, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said ICE officers are “working around the clock” to arrest and deport illegal immigrants roaming the country.
ICE sources told The Daily Wire they’re now working seven days a week and that the agency mandates that 70% of its personnel report to work each day.
“The hard-working men and women of DHS continue to break records as they defend the homeland and protect the American people,” Mullin said. “For the third straight month, ICE set a new record for the highest number of illegal aliens arrested in a single month, nearly 51,000.”
Mullin reminded illegal immigrants remaining in the country to “leave now” and take advantage of the federal government’s offer of a $3,000 stipend and free flight home for those who choose to self-deport.
“If you are in the country illegally, LEAVE NOW. If not, we will find you, arrest you, and deport you,” Mullin added.
One of ICE’s targets in August was disgraced provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos, who DHS said overstayed his visa and received a deportation order after failing to show up to a hearing.
Yiannopoulos, a proponent of mass deportations, was sent home to the United Kingdom just one day after his arrest in Louisiana late last month.
The self-described “ex-gay” claimed in an interview Tuesday that he had a green card and is married to an American citizen, his husband, whom he claims to no longer engage with in “the sex stuff.”
Yiannopoulos alleged that federal officials sent notices to old addresses to secure a hearing they knew he wouldn’t appear for. He also said he believes authorities “canceled” his green card “without telling” him before arresting him.
“I didn’t need to overstay a visa, there were dozens of companies who could’ve sponsored me, and I’m married to an American,” he said.
Along with Yiannopoulos, ICE arrested illegal immigrants convicted of crimes that include DUI manslaughter, child pornography, murder, sexual assault of a minor, and conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, according to DHS.
The Trump administration also recently nabbed roughly 2,100 illegal immigrants in a New York operation dubbed “Operation Rotten Apple” targeting those released from local jails due to sanctuary laws.
ICE has also begun targeting Haitian migrants who lost their Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in late July after the Supreme Court handed the Trump administration a victory in its fight against the longstanding program.
