Operation Guardian Angel is putting federal immigration power to work across Southern California, and the operation has already led to the arrest of 362 previously deported illegal migrants. The effort has focused on people tied to serious crimes, including a child molester, a rapist and an accused killer, according to federal authorities overseeing the crackdown.
In one recent action, federal agents moved quickly from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office at the Roybal Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles to the Twin Towers jail, where they took criminal migrants from county custody. Bill Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, said the government is drafting federal warrants on the spot so jail officials must turn suspects over before they walk free. He said the tactic is intended to keep dangerous offenders off the streets. Thomas Giles, who leads the ICE enforcement and removal operations field office in Los Angeles, said California politicians are forcing local agencies to release criminal illegal aliens back into the community.
The operation works by identifying foreign nationals who have already been arrested by local police and then filing new federal charges fast enough to stop their release. Under federal law, local jails are required to hand over criminal illegal migrants once federal warrants are presented. Essayli said the mission is meant to blunt California’s sanctuary state policy, which bars local police from cooperating with immigration agents even if they wanted to. The sweep is active in six Southern California counties under Essayli’s jurisdiction: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura.
During one operation last week, seven migrants came out of Twin Towers after recent arrests on charges including domestic battery, reckless driving causing injury and illegal firearms possession. Federal authorities said all of them had already been convicted of entering the United States illegally and later deported, which made them eligible for federal felony illegal-reentry charges. Some also faced the possibility of additional federal crimes, and many had long criminal histories. Their cases illustrate the strategy behind Operation Guardian Angel: federal officials are using the earlier deportations as a legal foothold to move quickly once local arrests happen.
