Hundreds Arrested in Indiana During Recent Five-Day ICE Crackdown

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested more than 400 undocumented immigrants in Indiana during a five-day operation in late August and early September, the agency announced this week.

Most of the arrests occurred in Indianapolis, the state’s capital city and population center.

The agency didn’t specify how many of the 426 immigrants detained in Operation Safe Community-Indiana have a criminal history. But it said some had records including sex crimes, assault, domestic violence and drug trafficking.

The arrests were part of a summer surge of ICE enforcement that has drawn less public attention than the mass deployments of agents to Minneapolis and other cities early this year. ICE arrests nationwide totaled more than 49,000 in July, the highest single-month tally during the second term of President Donald Trump. More than half of the people arrested did not have a criminal record.

ICE applauded unnamed local police partners in the Hoosier State for cooperating with the recent crackdown. Gov. Mike Braun (R) last year signed an executive order encouraging local law enforcement agencies to partner with ICE and assist in immigration arrests and requiring state law enforcement agencies to do so. As of early September, 39 Indiana departments had signed on to ICE cooperation agreements, according to the Indianapolis Star.

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