57 Convicted Sex Offenders Arrested In Southland ICE Operation
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested 57 foreign nationals with prior convictions for sex offenses during a three-day operation targeting criminal alien sex offenders in the Los Angeles area, authorities announced Friday.
The operation, which concluded Wednesday, resulted in 31 arrests in Los Angeles County, 11 in San Bernardino County, eight in Riverside County, four in Orange County, two in Ventura County and one in Santa Barbara County, according to ICE officials.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers assigned to the agency's Fugitive Operations Teams executed the enforcement effort.
"One of ICE's top immigration enforcement priorities is arresting and removing individuals who pose a threat to public safety and, by any measure, convicted sex offenders fit that description," David W. Jennings, field office director for ERO Los Angeles, said.
"Everyone should rest easier knowing these individuals are off our streets. We will use every tool and resource at our disposal to help ensure they don't endanger our communities again."
A previously deported convicted rapist from Mexico, identified as Victor Manuel Rodriguez, was among those arrested. Authorities said Rodriguez, 38, was taken into custody in Hesperia. He was convicted of rape in California in 1999.
Rodriguez is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for felony re-entry after deportation, a violation that carries a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
Also taken into custody was a 49-year-old Samoan man residing in Long Beach who has a prior conviction for committing lewd acts upon a child. Officers also detained a 24-year-old Filipino man in Oxnard who was convicted last year of sending obscene material to a minor.
Both individuals, whose names have not been released, were being held by ICE without bond pending removal proceedings.
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