Immigration and Customs Enforcement made a new record by conducting its largest single-day operation, apprehending over 2,200 individuals, NBC reported citing an ICE spokesperson. This surge in arrests comes amid White House directives to substantially increase enforcement activities.Several sources confirmed that many detainees were participants in ICE’s Alternative to Detention (ATD) programme, which monitors non-threatening undocumented immigrants through electronic devices and regular check-ins at ICE facilities.Immigration lawyers nationwide reported that ICE employed a new strategy, sending mass text messages to ATD participants requesting early check-ins, resulting in arrests upon arrival.On Wednesday, an NBC News reporter witnessed seven individuals being arrested during check-ins at a New York City ICE office. Among them was a 30-year-old Colombian man, whose distraught wife and daughter watched as masked officers led him away in handcuffs.Margaret Cargioli, directing attorney at the Immigrant Defenders Law Centre, emphasised that her client had been fully compliant with all ICE requirements and attended every appointment.Outside the immigration office, Veronica Navarrete observed anxious immigrants contemplating whether to attend their scheduled appointments, noting their difficult position between potential arrest or automatic deportation for missing check-ins.Regarding the arrests of monitored immigrants, an ICE spokesperson stated these individuals had received final removal orders from immigration judges and failed to comply. However, when lawyers contested this claim, citing clients without such orders, the spokesperson provided no immediate response.Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff for policy, reportedly issued an ultimatum to ICE leadership, demanding 3,000 daily arrests or face dismissal, according to sources present at the meeting.The remaining paragraphs continue with the same factual, straightforward tone, maintaining the original information while avoiding metaphorical language and keeping quoted text intact.
