West Virginia's immigration crackdown leads to 650 arrests in two-week operation

A two-week federal crackdown across West Virginia results in approximately 650 arrests, highlighting local cooperation with ICE under the 287(g) programme amid ongoing debates over civil rights and local involvement in immigration enforcement.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reported that a two-week enforcement campaign across West Virginia resulted in approximately 650 arrests, a sweep federal officials said targeted non‑citizens subject to removal orders an...

According to ICE, the operation ran from 5 January to 19 January and deployed teams to a number of communities, including Charleston, Martinsburg, Beckley, Moorefield, Morgantown and Huntington. The agency said the activity was coordinated with 14 law‑enforcement partners and proceeded without reported protests or major disruptions. The arrests will be processed through the appropriate legal channels, ICE added in its statement.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia described the effort as “Operation Country Roads” and confirmed the same 15‑day timeframe and overall total of 650 arrests. The Justice Department said more than 550 of those apprehensions involved local officers operating under the 287(g) programme, a federal arrangement that allows trained state and local personnel to carry out certain immigration enforcement duties under ICE supervision, and that West Virginia participants led the nation in daily immigration arrests on at least four days during the operation.

ICE singled out several individuals taken into custody. One was identified as Sagar Singh, a citizen of India, stopped on 8 January after failing to halt at a mandatory commercial‑vehicle brake check and cited for multiple vehicle violations; ICE said he had previously been ordered removed. The agency also reported the arrest of Ling Yan, also known as Yang Ning, a citizen of China with a prior conviction for two counts of endangering the welfare of children in Ravenna, Ohio. Federal officials said the operation additionally yielded arrests of people with convictions for drug offences and a convicted child sex abuser.

In its release ICE framed the operation as an example of bolstered cooperation with state and local partners. “This operation demonstrates how strong partnerships between ICE and West Virginia law enforcement agencies enhance public safety and the integrity of our immigration system,” Michael Rose, acting Field Office Director for ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations in Philadelphia, said in the agency statement. “By training and supporting our… partners across the state, we’ve expanded local capacity to identify, arrest and process illegal aliens while ensuring these authorities are exercised professionally and consistent with the law.”

State officials have publicly celebrated the collaboration. The West Virginia governor’s office issued several announcements in recent months highlighting arrests made under 287(g) agreements involving the State Police, the National Guard and the Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and Governor Patrick Morrisey hailed the state’s commitment to enforcing immigration laws. The governor’s website noted separate, shorter enforcement actions in which state police and ICE cooperated to remove smaller numbers of undocumented individuals in prior periods.

Local law enforcement involved in the operation also praised the federal teams. Jefferson County Sheriff Tom Hansen said: “The Sheriff’s Office was impressed with the professionalism and work ethic of the agents and how well they interacted with the citizens and local law enforcement officers,” adding: “Working with such a high-caliber group of agents who were assigned to Jefferson County made the decision to support the initiative worthwhile.” He said the effort led to “the opportunity to remove numerous dangerous criminals from our community.”

Independent reporting and advocacy outlets have highlighted the prominence of the 287(g) framework in this and other recent enforcement efforts, noting the programme’s role in enabling local participation in immigration enforcement while also prompting debate about civil‑rights safeguards and the proper balance between federal and local responsibilities.

Federal officials emphasised that participating agencies concentrated on individuals who were already the subject of removal orders or who had criminal histories, and on immigration violations uncovered during routine encounters. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and ICE said the operation is part of a broader, continuing campaign to strengthen inter‑agency cooperation on immigration enforcement in West Virginia and elsewhere.

Source: Noah Wire Services