Current:Home > BackICE arrests 8 with suspected ISIS ties-InfoLens
ICE arrests 8 with suspected ISIS ties
View Date:2024-12-23 16:36:17
Washington — Federal investigators arrested eight foreign nationals located in the U.S. with alleged ties to the terrorist group ISIS in recent days, multiple officials with knowledge of the operation confirmed to CBS News on Tuesday.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) apprehended the Tajikistani nationals in Los Angeles, New York and Philadelphia, and they are currently facing immigration charges, the officials said.
There was no active terror plot, and the sources said information of concern came to the attention of law enforcement at least in part through a wiretap after the individuals had crossed into the U.S.
The news of the apprehensions was first reported by the New York Post.
The arrests occurred within months after FBI Director Christopher Wray warned in April that human smuggling operations at the southern border were bringing in people with possible connections to terror groups.
Sources familiar with the operation said the individuals had been vetted by law enforcement upon entering the U.S., and there was no indication that they had ties to ISIS at the time. Law enforcement subsequently became concerned with their presence in the U.S. and took action, the officials said.
A senior Department of Homeland Security official tells CBS News the eight migrants arrested by ICE crossed the U.S. southern border without proper documents and were subsequently released into the U.S. with notices to appear in immigration court.
The official confirmed DHS did not have any information linking the migrants to ISIS at the time of their release. They are currently in ICE detention facing deportation proceedings for civil immigration violations.
The official noted that it is very difficult for the U.S. to deport migrants to Tajikistan due to both operational and diplomatic reasons. In fiscal year 2023, ICE deported only 4 migrants to that Central Asian country, according to agency data.
The arrests were carried out in close coordination with the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Forces, the FBI and Department of Homeland Security said in a statement, adding that the individuals who were arrested are in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
"As the FBI and DHS have recently described in public and partner bulletins, the U.S. has been in a heightened threat environment," the statement went on to say. "The FBI and DHS will continue working around the clock with our partners to identify, investigate, and disrupt potential threats to national security."
- In:
- ISIS
veryGood! (4529)
Related
- Gossip Girl Actress Chanel Banks Reported Missing After Vanishing in California
- Texas man sentenced to 5 years in prison for threat to attack Turning Point USA convention in 2022
- Trump faces prospect of additional sanctions in hush money trial as key witness resumes testimony
- President Joe Biden calls Japan and India ‘xenophobic’ nations that do not welcome immigrants
- Women suing over Idaho’s abortion ban describe dangerous pregnancies, becoming ‘medical refugees’
- Forget Starbucks: Buy this unstoppable growth stock instead
- Police order dispersal of gathering at UCLA as protests continue nationwide | The Excerpt
- Alex Pietrangelo's bad penalty proves costly as Stars beat Golden Knights in Game 5
- Is the stock market open on Veterans Day? What to know ahead of the federal holiday
- Powerball winning numbers for May 1: Jackpot rises to $203 million with no winners
Ranking
- Alexandra Daddario Shares Candid Photo of Her Postpartum Body 6 Days After Giving Birth
- Stock market today: Asian markets wobble after Fed sticks with current interest rates
- House committee delays vote on bill to allow inmates to participate in parole hearings
- Medicaid expansion discussions could fall apart in Republican-led Mississippi
- At age 44, Rich Hill's baseball odyssey continues - now with Team USA
- Sword-wielding man charged with murder in London after child killed, several others wounded
- Lightning coach Jon Cooper apologizes for 'skirts' comment after loss to Panthers
- And Just Like That Season 3: Rosie O’Donnell Joining Sex and the City Revival
Recommendation
-
Groups seek a new hearing on a Mississippi mail-in ballot lawsuit
-
Advocates say Supreme Court must preserve new, mostly Black US House district for 2024 elections
-
Robert De Niro accused of berating pro-Palestinian protesters during filming for Netflix show
-
Anne Hathaway on 'The Idea of You,' rom-coms and her Paul McCartney Coachella moment
-
2 weeks after Peanut the Squirrel's euthanasia, owner is seeking answers, justice
-
Powerball winning numbers for May 1: Jackpot rises to $203 million with no winners
-
5th victim’s body recovered from Baltimore Key Bridge collapse, 1 still missing
-
Say hello (again) to EA Sports College Football. The beloved video-game behemoth is back