ORLANDO, Fla. — The country’s top immigration official was in Orlando Friday when he announced the first arrests under the Alien Enemies Act. That’s the 1789 law that allows broader power in the deportation of undocumented immigrants.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s acting director, Todd Lyons, joined local and state law enforcement officials at the Florida Highway Patrol office to discuss the arrests.
The arrests included alleged Tren de Aragua, or TdA, gang members, one of whom was 52-year-old Franklin Jose Jimenez-Bracho, a citizen of Venezuela. He is accused of multiple crimes, including the murder of his wife in 2021.
Lyons said authorities have apprehended 68 alleged TdA gang members in the past 48 hours and 390 since the beginning of January.
Officials said these arrests are their mission in Florida and across the nation. They did not do into details of their plans.
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