ICE makes arrests, advocates speak up

WASHINGTON COUNTY, Wis. (CBS 58) – The Immigration and Customs Enforcement made three arrests Friday morning during what they’re calling targeted raids.

But immigration advocates feel there was more to the raid.

A spokesperson for ICE assures the arrests were not part of a trend.

“They were actually targeted for not only their immigration violation but they were also arrested based on recent contact with the criminal justice system,” says ICE spokesperson Nicole Alberico. “So they do have pending criminal charges.”

For privacy reasons, Alberico says she cannot go into detail of what those charges are. However, immigration advocates Voces de La Frontera claim those charges they presented are minimal.

“From the preliminary information that we have, these are due to traffic infractions,” says Voces de la Frontera founder Christine Neumann-Ortiz. “ICE was trolling the court system.”

“I know what it feels like,” says Jennifer Estrada. “I know the fear the moms are going through.”

Estrada says her husband was deported in 2012 in a similar raid.

“Driving without a license was never a state charge,” explains Estrada. “Now it is. My husband was not a criminal. He didn’t any charges on him but for a minor driving offense.”

While ICE claims the arrested individuals were targeted for their criminal record, advocates feel otherwise.

“ICE has a public relations strategy of categorizing everyone as a threat,” says Neumann-Ortiz. “Under Trump’s repeal of executive orders everyone is a target.”

ICE agents also say the two arrests made on a dairy farm were just protocol and not a raid against dairy farms across the state. The third person was arrested near their home.