Over a single weekend, ICE conducted enforcement operations targeting individuals who had entered the country illegally and carried prior criminal convictions for serious offenses including sexual assault, robbery, manslaughter, and human trafficking. The operation resulted in the arrest of multiple criminal aliens across the country. The announcement was published by the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Public Affairs.

ICE Newark officers arrested Daniel Firmino Dos Santos Vicente, a Brazilian national whose tourist visa expired in April 2016, during an enforcement operation on August 9. Officers discovered an illegal 9mm handgun, an airsoft gun, and a large knife in his vehicle. Vicente now faces federal criminal charges for being an undocumented immigrant in possession of a firearm and remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

Between July 21 and August 3, 2025, ICE agencies in Newark apprehended four individuals with criminal histories involving child exploitation, bringing the total to eight arrests in an ongoing operation targeting illegally present individuals convicted of child-related offenses. All four were required to register as sex offenders in New Jersey. They are being held pending removal proceedings.

The federal government filed suit against the mayors of Newark, Jersey City, Paterson, and Hoboken — all Democrats — over city policies prosecutors contend interfere with the Trump administration's immigration detention and deportation operations. The complaint alleges the cities deny federal immigration agents access to individuals in local custody, restrict officers' ability to transfer detainees to federal agents, and bar local officers from sharing information with federal immigration authorities. Prosecutors are seeking a court declaration that the policies violate the Constitution's Supremacy Clause and an injunction blocking the cities from shielding residents from immigration enforcement.

Ezequiel Brito, 40, a Dominican national also known as "Jose Luis Portorreal Cruz," was extradited to the United States after absconding from pretrial supervision and fleeing to the Dominican Republic following his 2021 arrest on drug charges. Brito faces one count of conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl and one count of possession with intent to distribute, each carrying a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory minimum of 10 years. He made his initial appearance on July 2, 2025, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor in Newark federal court and was detained.

Jose Manuel Menjivar Viera, 35, a citizen of El Salvador residing in Long Branch, New Jersey, was charged with one count of being an illegal alien in possession of firearms after officers responding to reports of gunshots in a residential neighborhood observed him carrying a large black bag containing a semiautomatic rifle, a loaded handgun, firearm magazines, ammunition, and a machete. DHS/ICE agents confirmed Viera had no legal status to remain in the United States. The charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Cesar Eliseo Sorto-Amaya, 28, a citizen of El Salvador convicted in absentia in April 2024 of double aggravated homicide and sentenced to 50 years in prison in El Salvador, was charged with illegally reentering the United States and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jose R. Almonte in Newark federal court. Since 2015, Sorto-Amaya had been deported from and illegally returned to the United States three separate times, including once after a weapons possession conviction in Elizabeth, New Jersey. El Salvadoran authorities alerted ICE to his likely whereabouts, and agents located him on the front porch of a home at an address provided by Salvadoran law enforcement.

Anastacio Santiago Chaparro, 41, a Mexican national, was sentenced to 110 months in federal prison for cocaine trafficking and illegal reentry into the United States. During his November 2023 arrest by ICE Homeland Security Investigations Newark, agents discovered over 10 kilograms of cocaine in a backpack he was carrying, which he admitted was intended for distribution. Chaparro had previously been deported three times and carried a prior conviction for illegal firearm possession, classified as an aggravated felony.

ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations arrested Juan Luis Ramos Marin, 23, a Venezuelan national wanted for homicide in Brazil, on April 29 in East Orange, New Jersey. ICE Newark Field Office Director John Tsoukaris stated that Ramos is a criminal alien with multiple charges for crimes committed on the East Coast primarily related to theft. Ramos had entered the United States without inspection and was detained pending removal proceedings.

ICE Homeland Security Investigations arrested Adelso Garcia Martinez, 29, a Guatemalan national, on May 13 for immigration violations. Garcia had an active arrest warrant from Guatemala for two counts of attempted aggravated homicide and had unlawfully entered the United States in 2021 as the sponsor of an unaccompanied alien child. The arrest was made as part of ICE's broader effort to protect unaccompanied alien children from exploitation and trafficking.