CENTRAL ISLIP, NY – Officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Long Island, New York, Sub-Office arrested 23 sexual predators during a six-day period ending Nov. 2 on Long Island in an enforcement effort dubbed “Operation SOAR” (Sex Offender Alien Removal).

In the course of Operation SOAR, ERO deportation officers apprehended 23 individuals with past criminal convictions ranging from sexual abuse to rape. Several of those arrested are registered sexual offenders. Each taken into custody is currently being detained pending the completion of removal proceedings, criminal prosecution, or removal from the United States.

“When we talk about the safety of our communities, it should not be politics, it should be common sense. We arrested nearly two dozen convicted sex offenders this past week, including many who conducted heinous acts against children, and could have been turned over to ICE instead of released back into our neighborhoods,” said Thomas R. Decker, field office director for ERO New York. “The rule of law should not be blatantly disregarded by the people elected and paid to serve the public because of their political view, especially if it means we allow those who sexually violated children, and those who have no legal status, to remain in the country.”

Arrests include:

In Wheatley Heights, a 37-year-old previously removed Honduran national and registered sexual offender with a prior conviction of sexual misconduct: person has intercourse with another without consent. The victim was a 15-year-old child;

In Uniondale, a 52-year-old Jamaican national with a prior federal conviction for receiving material Involving the sexual exploitation of a minor, for which a sentence of 120 months imprisonment was imposed;

In Manorville, a 43-year-old Honduran national with a prior conviction for rape 3rd: victim incapable of consent, for which a sentence of 10 years of probation supervision was imposed;

In Port Washington, a 21-year-old Guatemalan national who recently pleaded guilty to Attempted Forcible Touching;

In Brooklyn, a 41-year-old previously removed Salvadoran national with a prior convictions for sexual conduct against a child, for which a sentence of four years imprisonment was imposed, for forcible touching, and act in manner injure a child, for which a sentence of one year in prison was imposed, and for failure to register as a sexual offender, for which a sentence of one year in prison was imposed;

In Manhattan, a 41-year-old Egyptian national, released from NYPD custody three separate times in 2019 with an active detainer, who has multiple pending charges of forcible touching: subject victim to sexual contact on bus/train/subway, forcible touching: touch sexual/intimate parts of another person, harassment: physical contact, and sexual abuse: subject another person to sexual contact without consent. All of the crimes were committed in the transit system;

In Mineola, a 48-year-old Portuguese national with a prior conviction of act in manner to injure a child;

In Hicksville, a 46-year-old Pakistani national with a prior conviction of criminal sexual act 3rd: victim less than 17 years old;

In Roosevelt, a 28-year-old Filipino national with a prior conviction for endangering the welfare of child;

In Huntington Station, a 34-year-old Salvadoran national with a prior conviction of act in manner to injure a child: victim less than 17 years old, for which a sentence of three years of probation supervision was imposed;

In Rocky Point, a 41-year-old Canadian national with a prior conviction of act in manner to injure a child: victim less than 17 years old, for which a sentence of three years of probation supervision was imposed;

In Brooklyn, a 23-year-old Dominican national previously convicted of rape 2nd: intercourse with person less than 15 years old, and act in manner injure child: victim less than 17 years old;

In Uniondale, a 53-year-old previously removed Honduran national with a prior conviction of sexual misconduct, for which a sentence of six years of probation supervision was imposed.

Criminal histories of those arrested during the operation are as follows: acting in manner injure child, aggravated DWI, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, attempted forcible touching, attempted petit larceny, attempted sexual misconduct, criminal contempt, criminal mischief, criminal obstruction of breathing, criminal possession of stolen property,criminal sexual act, disorderly conduct, DWI, endangering the welfare of a child, false impersonation, harassment, petit larceny, possession of a forged instrument, receiving material Involving the sexual exploitation of a minor, sexual abuse, and sexual misconduct.

The arrestees include nationals from Canada, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines, and Portugal.

ERO deportation officers made arrests throughout Long Island, specifically in Nassau County: Mineola, Port Washington, Roosevelt, Uniondale; and in Suffolk County: Brentwood, Central Islip, Copiague, Huntington Station, Manorville, Riverhead, Rocky Point, Wheatley Heights, and Wyandanch. Additionally, two arrests were made in Brooklyn, and one each in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens.

Five of the individuals arrested during this operation will face federal criminal prosecutions for illegal entry and illegal reentry after removal. An alien who illegally reenters the United States, has committed a felony punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison. The arrestees who are not being federally prosecuted are being detained in ICE custody, and will be processed administratively for removal from the United States. Those arrestees who have outstanding orders of removal are subject to immediate removal from the country. The remaining individuals are in ICE custody awaiting a hearing before an immigration judge.

ICE deportation officers carry out targeted enforcement actions every day in locations around the country as part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to protect the nation, uphold public safety and protect the integrity of our immigration laws and border controls. These enforcement actions involve existing, established Fugitive Operations Teams.