U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers busted three criminal illegal aliens that law enforcement officials in sanctuary New York City released after ignoring immigration detainers.

The New York Police Department (NYPD) released 45-year-old Pablo Garcia-Taveras, a Dominican national, after they arrested him in March. NYPD let the twice-deported felon go without notifying ICE and ignored an immigration detainer filed with Bronx Central Booking.

Garcia-Taveras has multiple felony drug convictions, including one for felony criminal possession of a controlled substance and felony attempted criminal possession of a controlled substance. He was deported to the Dominican Republic in 2004 and 2008. He illegally re-entered the country and in 2005, NYPD officers arrested the Dominican national for a crime he allegedly committed locally. ICE officers later arrested Garcia-Taveras convicted him on federal re-entry after deportation charges. Immigration officials deported the criminal alien again after he served 30 months in federal prison.

In 2014, ICE officials obtained a federal arrest warrant after determining that Garcia-Taveras had again entered the country illegally. The felon absconded before he could be arrested. On October 24 of this year, the New Jersey State Police (NJSP) arrested him. ICE notified ERO deportation officers who arrested Garcia-Taveras in Newark, New Jersey on the 2014 federal reentry after deportation charges. If convicted, he is facing up to 20 years in prison.

The NYPD arrested another criminal illegal alien, a 37-year-old Ecuadorian national, on September 24 in Queens, New York. ERO deportation officers filed an immigration detainer on Rafael Tenesa-Borocho with the NYPD, but they released him without ICE being notified.

NYPD officers arrested a Mexican national, 26-year-old Francisco Morales-Ariza, on September 19. ERO officers filed an immigration detainer, but NYPD officials released Morales-Ariza without notifying ICE. ERO deportation officers arrested him on October 18 on immigration charges when they found him in Manhattan. He is in detention waiting for his immigration hearing.

The field director for ERO in New York released a statement that said, “ICE is committed to promoting public safety, even when facing significant obstacles created by local elected officials’ obstructionist policies.” He added, “Every day, our officers put their lives on the line to arrest criminal aliens who could have easily been transferred to ICE custody within the confines of a secure jail environment.”

Just last month ICE agents arrested 498 criminal illegal aliens during a four-day operation. Operation “Safe City” netted these foreign nationals from some 42 countries after the agency was denied access to investigate suspected immigration violations, or after criminal illegal aliens were released even though there were immigration holds.

Operation Safe City targeted immigration violators who are known gang members and their affiliates, along with other criminal illegal aliens. Among those arrested was an El Salvadorian who had been previously charged with attempted murder/conspiracy to commit murder, and first degree assault. They also arrested a Mexican gang member that rammed multiple patrol cars at the time of his arrest.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX, Gab, and Facebook.