So far in 2025, over 17,500 illegal immigrants have been arrested under the Laken Riley Act, which was President Trump’s first signed law, mandating ICE detention for those accused of crimes like theft, DUI, and violence, named after murdered Georgia student Laken Riley.
For context, DHS concluded “Operation Angel’s Honor,” arresting over 1,000 such offenders in two weeks, including convicted serious criminals from various countries. Secretary Kristi Noem praised the efforts to deliver justice. Critics like Nayna Gupta argue the law risks detaining non-threats without due process and disrupts immigration enforcement.
Reacting to this major crackdown, Kristi Noem, the DHS Secretary, declared, “In honor of Laken Riley, ICE launched Operation Angel’s Honor — in the last 2 weeks alone arresting more than 1,000 criminal illegal aliens under the authority of the Laken Riley Act.”
Continuing her comments with a sober note, the DHS head added, “We can never bring Laken back, but we can do everything in our power to bring these heinous criminals to justice.” In response to this comment, the agency issued an official DHS statement that added more detail.
“President Trump has empowered us to arrest and remove the millions of violent criminal illegal aliens unleashed on the United States by the previous administration,” the DHS noted in a recent press release concerning this major crackdown.
Offering another view, ICE Director Todd Lyons stated, “We named this operation ‘Angel’s Honor’ in honor of the memory of Laken Riley, whose life was tragically cut short by illegal alien crime. This operation, while a massive success, also serves as a solemn reminder of the profound impact that immigrant violence and crime can have on victims and their loved ones. ICE’s mission is to ensure that no more Americans will fall victim to illegal alien crime.”
Watch the families of kids killed by illegal aliens thank Trump for finally defending the border here:
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Reacting in a self-serving manner, Nayna Gupta, a policy director for the American Immigration Council, issued a statement after the law passed. “This bill does nothing to improve safety or fix our broken immigration system,” she whined.
Still not done complaining, Gupta added, “Under the guise of preventing violence, the bill forces immigration officers to indefinitely detain and deport non-citizens who pose no public safety risk, without access to basic due process.”
Wrapping up her screed, the immigration activist alleged, “The bill also gives state attorneys general unprecedented power over immigration policy. The bill strips people of their basic rights and upends how the U.S. government enforces immigration law.”
Providing context, ICE explained the reason for the name of this new law. ICE noted, “The law is named after a Georgia nursing student who was killed by an illegal alien from Venezuela and member of the Tren de Aragua, who was previously arrested and released into the U.S. under the Biden administration in September 2022.”
DHS concludes this document by blasting the bluie states complicit in this senseless violence. “He was previously arrested by NYPD for acting in a manner to injure a child less than 17 and RELEASED back into American neighborhoods. He then went on to commit the heinous murder of Laken Riley,” the statement read.