WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 (UPI) -- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement set a record in fiscal 2010 for removal of illegal aliens -- more than 392,000 nationwide, officials said.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said half of those removed, more than 195,000, were convicted criminals.
A department statement said the fiscal 2010 statistics represent increases of more than 23,000 removals overall and 81,000 criminal removals compared to fiscal 2008 -- a more than 70 percent increase in removal of criminal aliens from the last year of the previous administration.
The department also has expanded the Secure Communities initiative, the statement said. The initiative uses biometric (or physical) information and services to identify and remove criminal aliens in state prisons and local jails.
Biometric-driven prison or jail removals involved 14 jurisdictions in 2008, but have increased to more than 660 today, the department said, including all jurisdictions along the Southwest border.
Homeland Security said it will expand the program to all law enforcement jurisdictions nationwide by 2013.
Secure Communities has resulted in the arrest of more than 59,000 convicted criminal aliens this year, the department said, including more than 21,000 convicted of major violent offenses like murder, rape, and the sexual abuse of children.
Also since January 2009, ICE has audited more than 3,200 employers suspected of hiring illegal labor and imposed about $50 million in financial sanctions. The department said that is more than the total amount of audits conducted during the entire previous administration.
The department said more information is available at www.dhs.gov.
