About 14,000 undocumented immigrants have been arrested since US President Donald Trump took office, US border administrator Tom Homan said.
The number of border crossings has dropped by 92 percent in the same period, he said, citing a significant reduction in the number of people entering without proper travel documents.
“We’ve done a pretty good job of closing the border. We’re not done, but the border is looking really good,” Homan said.
He noted that many of those arrested had criminal records, although specific details were not provided.
He added that more than 600,000 undocumented immigrants in the United States (US) have criminal records, highlighting public safety concerns.
Meanwhile, CBS News reported that the Trump administration is sending non-violent, “low-risk” irregular migrants to Guantanamo, despite promises to detain only the “worst cases” there.
In recent weeks, Trump has ordered the construction of a center at Guantanamo Bay that would house up to 30,000 of the “worst criminal illegal aliens who pose a threat to the American people.”
Internal government documents reveal that some detainees have little or no serious criminal records and are being deported for “civil immigration violations.”
These low-risk individuals are housed in barracks-like facilities, while high-risk detainees are held in maximum-security cells, according to US media, AA writes.
