Deportations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have exceeded 100,000 since President Trump returned to office in January, as he follows through on his pledge to remove illegal migrants, suspected gang members, and alleged terrorists from the country, The Post has learned.
According to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) source, ICE officials have arrested 113,000 individuals and carried out “north of” 100,000 deportations since Trump’s inauguration on January 20.
“He’s doing what he was voted in to do. Point blank!” an ICE source stated.
While the exact number of detainees with criminal convictions, their case statuses, and their national origins remain unclear, sources believe the majority are being deported to Mexico.
Trump, who campaigned heavily on strict immigration enforcement, declared an emergency at the border on his first day back in office. He deployed thousands of additional troops, shut down the asylum system for illegal crossers, and launched a nationwide deportation campaign.
ICE has since reached full capacity in its detention facilities and is urging Congress to fund additional beds to support the administration’s deportation effort. Within the first 50 days of Trump’s presidency, ICE had already made 32,000 arrests.
As part of his crackdown on transnational criminal organizations, Trump invoked the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan gang members to a high-security prison in notorious El Salvadoran. Despite a federal judge blocking the use of the wartime-era law earlier this month, 17 alleged members of Tren de Aragua and MS-13 were shackled and sent to El Salvador on Sunday night.
Illegal crossings at the US-Mexico border have plummeted to historic lows, with March numbers marking the lowest in decades—an impact DHS sources refer to as “the Trump effect.”
In March, border agents reported just 7,000 illegal crossings—down an astonishing 94% from the 137,000 crossings recorded in March of the previous year under former President Biden. February’s crossings, at approximately 8,300, were the lowest in at least 25 years.
“Illegal entries into the United States are no longer a backdoor way to getting status,” a DHS source explained.
Migrants are reportedly deterred by the increased enforcement, with a DHS source stating, “They’re scared there are consequences now. Everyone who is caught is charged and does time.”
The majority of recent illegal crossings have occurred in the San Diego and El Paso border sectors. If the downward trend continues, the U.S. could see illegal migration numbers drop to levels not seen since 1968.
