ICE sweep in GA, NC and SC nets 80 arrests

ATLANTA (AP) — Federal immigration officials have arrested 80 immigrants with criminal convictions in a three-day targeted operation in Georgia and the Carolinas.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement says Operation Cross Check began Monday and wrapped up Wednesday. ICE says all 80 people taken into custody had previous criminal convictions, many of them for serious or violent offenses.

ICE arrested 33 people in Georgia, 32 in North Carolina and 15 in South Carolina. They are natives of Mexico, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic and are being held in ICE custody pending immigration proceedings or deportation.

The arrests were led by ICE’s national Criminal Alien Program, which the agency says is responsible for locating, arresting and removing immigrants who have committed crimes.