More than 17,500 arrests in 2025 have been tied to the Laken Riley Act, a new federal law requiring mandatory detention for certain crimes committed by noncitizens, and the Department of Homeland Security says a two-week operation called Operation Angel’s Honor helped drive a surge in arrests under that law. The statute is named for Laken Riley, a Georgia student whose death catalyzed the legislation, and enforcement has become a focal point for officials who argue it restores basic public safety. The rollout has supporters celebrating tougher interior enforcement and critics warning about due process and overreach.
The Laken Riley Act was written to require ICE detention for noncitizens arrested for specific offenses, not waiting for conviction before beginning immigration processing. Lawmakers framed it as a straightforward public-safety measure that closes a gap they say allowed dangerous people to slip free. The law singles out a range of theft, driving and violent offenses as triggers for mandatory custody.
The list of qualifying crimes covers theft-related offenses, DUI or DWI, and violent acts including murder, rape, sexual abuse, assault on police and firearms infractions. Supporters argue these are the very crimes that threaten communities and demand a firm federal response. That hard line underpins the law’s core rationale.
Homeland Security announced the end of Operation Angel’s Honor after two weeks of nationwide enforcement aimed specifically at those falling under the Laken Riley Act. “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,” the department said in a statement attributed to its leadership. DHS said the effort averaged dozens of criminal arrests per day as agents focused on those specified offenses.
President Trump signed the Laken Riley Act as the first law of his second term, and his administration is being credited by enforcement officials for giving ICE broader leverage to detain and remove criminal noncitizens. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other agency leaders have praised the law as a necessary tool to regain control of interior enforcement after years of lax practices. That political framing underscores a Republican view that strict enforcement is the most effective public-safety policy.
The operation highlighted a roster of arrests that federal officials say show the law working as intended. Among those cited by DHS were Sergio Luis Hernandez Gonzalez, convicted on 17 counts of larceny and other theft-related crimes; Jersson Andrey Poveda Delgado, convicted of assaulting a police officer; and Yaser Garcia Ramirez, charged with conspiracy to manufacture and distribute heroin along with domestic violence and obstruction counts.
Officials also noted arrests of Santos Chim-Diego, convicted of resisting and assault on an officer plus DUI and child cruelty; Hamid Abdulimam Al Nassar, convicted of procuring a prostitute who is a minor along with an array of drug and fraud offenses; and Nathaniel Sterling, detained after convictions for carnal abuse, weapons possession and disorderly conduct. Mexican national Omar Barojas-Arenas was listed for a kidnapping conviction, and Jorby Joel Escuraina-Suarez was cited for aggravated assault with a weapon.
Proponents say those names illustrate why mandatory detention matters: to keep people off the streets while the immigration system processes them. DHS officials framed the arrests as restoring common-sense protections and bringing dangerous offenders to federal custody instead of relying on local jurisdictions that had released them. The political message is clear: enforcement comes first to prevent more tragedies.
Not everyone agrees, and civil rights and immigration groups have pushed back strongly against the law and how it is being used. “This bill does nothing to improve safety or fix our broken immigration system,” said Nayna Gupta, policy director for the American Immigration Council. “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,” she said in a statement after the law passed.
“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,” Gupta concluded. Critics argue that relying on arrest rather than conviction risks sweeping in people who are innocent or whose charges never lead to conviction, and they warn the law hands too much discretion to federal and state officials.
