BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, Jan. 10.18 – THE United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agency has for 2017 recorded an increase in the number of citizens belonging to the Federation up for removal.
In data released in December, the Federation had 16 people who are on ICE’s list for removal, an increase over the 9 of 2016.
The Federation’s numbers were minor when compared to other countries in the region and Latin America.
Mexico topped the list of countries with deportees, as ICE officials disclosed that they saw a decrease, with 2017 figures pegged at 128,765, whilst 2016 figures stood at 149,821.
Guatemala was in a distant second with 33,570 citizens up for removal, as compared with 33,940 removed in 2016.
In the Caribbean, Jamaica was at the top of the list, with 782 persons in custody for deportation, a minor decrease to the 787 in 2016.
Guyana was in second with 137 people on ICE’s removal list, an increase over the 93 recorded a year earlier.
Additionally, Trinidad and Tobago (128); the Bahamas (95); Belize (82); Antigua and Barbuda (19); Barbados (19) and Grenada (15) were some of the notable countries in the region.
According to ICE, the statistics demonstrated ICE’s continued “commitment to identifying, arresting, and removing aliens who are in violation of U.S. law, particularly those posing a public safety or national security threat, while restoring fidelity to the rule of law”.
Further, they revealed that for 2017, ICE Enforcement Removal Operations conducted 143,470 overall administrative arrests, which is the highest number of administrative arrests over the past three fiscal years.
Of those arrests, 92 percent had a criminal conviction, a pending criminal charge, were an ICE fugitive or were processed with a reinstated final order. In 2017, ICE conducted 226,119 removals.
US Officials had indicated a concern about home countries not accepting their citizens.
Commissioner of Police, Ian Queeley during an SKNVibes interview noted that the federation has cooperated with law enforcement officials in the US when it comes to receiving deportees.
He said that it is not about cooperation in deportation, but rather the home country accepting its citizens who were prosecuted and deemed persona non-grata, and subsequently sent to their country of birth.
“It’s not about cooperation. They are our people, they are our nationals,” he said.
According to the CoP, when deportees are returned to St. Kitts and Nevis, they are received by the police, interviewed and processed before being released to family members.
Contrary to reports, those deportees are not placed in lockup after they are processed.
He however noted, that there are some persons, because of the nature of the offense they are deported for they are escorted to their final destination by law enforcement officials.
