August 16, 2007

ICE removes 168 illegal aliens in largest flight to Africa in two years
96 of the Liberians, Nigerians and Ghanaians had criminal records

BUFFALO - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in a special flight out of Niagara Falls, N.Y., Tuesday, Aug. 15, removed 168 illegal African immigrants, 96 of them with criminal records to their home countries. This government charter flight was the largest to Africa in two years.

The criminal records of the aliens included convictions of homicide, sexual assault, aggravated robbery and assault, fraud and forgery, importation, sale and/or possession of drugs, larceny, robbery, burglary, weapons possession, prostitution, reckless injury to a child and immigration-related violations. A special Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System (JPATS) flight was chartered to avoid putting criminals on commercial airline flights. The flight would make stops in Liberia, Ghana and Nigeria.

"Many of the aliens removed on this flight are people who have broken the law in our communities," said William Cleary, field office director for ICE detention and removal operations in Buffalo. "While America is a welcoming country, ICE is committed to ensuring public safety and national security. When those who enter our country illegally then prey on our citizens, we are going to find them, prosecute them and remove them permanently from our streets, never to return."

In fiscal year 2006, ICE removed 197,804 illegal aliens from the country, a record for the agency and a 10 percent increase over the number of removals during the prior fiscal year. Already in fiscal year 2007, ICE has removed 217,599 individuals.

Of the aliens being removed from the United States yesterday, 104 were Nigerians, 40 Ghanaians and 24 Liberians. Individuals had been housed at various detention facilities across the country and were staged at the Batavia Federal Detention Facility shortly before the flight.

ICE staffed the repatriation flight with ICE Detention and Removal officers, Public Health Service medical staff personnel, consular officers from Nigeria and Ghana and a member of the Nigerian High Commission stationed in Canada.

ICE manages alien transportation and repatriation flights via Special Charter Missions and JPATS. JPATS is a Department of Justice program that services the client agencies of ICE, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Prisons, with ICE being the largest client, using over 65% of JPATS' flight hours.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

  Last Modified: