- 6/4/2025
Beyond Borders - Inside American Immigration is a compelling and heart-stopping documentary series about ICE - Immigration and Customs Enforcement. With exclusive access to ICE/ERO during the last year of Trump’s presidency the series captures in gripping detail the high stakes game of cat and mouse played out every day across America between law enforcement and those regarded as foreign criminals evading justice. Revealing the real challenges beyond the US borders.
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TVTranscript
00:01Following the attack on the United States on 9-11,
00:04the U.S. government restructured its handling of investigating
00:07and managing immigration and related activity around the world.
00:11It created ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
00:16ICE now has more than 20,000 law enforcement and support personnel
00:20in more than 400 offices in the United States and around the world.
00:26In 2019, a camera crew was offered access to follow and document
00:31what the men and women of ICE do on a daily basis.
00:35Every year, ICE removes thousands of immigrants from the United States,
00:40the majority for committing crimes.
00:44We're not going to focus on the person that jaywalked down the street.
00:47We're talking egregious crimes, murder, sex offenses, child molestation.
00:51The vehicle just pulled up in front of our target house.
00:57How are you doing?
00:59But the activities of ICE and its enforcement and removal operations
01:02is not without controversy.
01:04Hi, officer.
01:06I go and I go hunting for these ICE agents over here.
01:10Sing twice, melt the ice.
01:11We see ICE as an asylum in the very character and history of the United States.
01:15Don't sing twice, melt the ice.
01:17A lot of people want to make it out that ICE, ERO specifically, wants to target everybody in the country.
01:22They wouldn't come on our radar if they were here just for a better life.
01:25These are the men and women of ICE and the work they do 365 days a year.
01:30Are you going to comply this time?
01:31No.
01:32You're not going to comply?
01:33No.
01:34Let's go home.
01:35Let's go home.
01:37Let's go.
01:39And their core mission to enforce America's immigration laws.
01:43Beyond Borders – Inside American Immigration.
01:47Showtime.
01:49This time on Beyond Borders Inside American Immigration,
01:55A plastic surgeon with an alleged trail of botched surgeries behind him.
01:59This is not a good guy. They always have their side of the story, but then you have the truth.
02:04A drug importation deal done on the web.
02:07He didn't question anything about it. He just accepted the offer.
02:12And as officers begin a repatriation to West Africa, things start to go wrong.
02:17You always have to prepare for the unknown. This is the last stop in the United States form.
02:25The ICE Detention Center at Crome, west of Miami, processes hundreds of cases each month,
02:42from simple border crossings to major criminals and gang members from all over the world.
02:47This morning, officers are attending a briefing ahead of an operation against a man who has been masquerading as a plastic surgeon.
02:54Well, he's been known to defraud several people in his community to invest in his business in the sums of over $150,000 so far.
03:04So the target for tomorrow morning's operation is a Brazilian national, a self-proclaimed doctor.
03:09He allegedly has botched several procedures. One of the victims has come forward and placed a complaint.
03:18I can't believe he's still free and act like a doctor. I pray to God every single day. He have to pay for it. Because I cannot live like this anymore.
03:31The target is 42-year-old Elias de Oliveira Campos.
03:37He's a guy who works out, so be prepared that he could possibly put up a fight or something like that.
03:43In case he runs, we'll have an exterior perimeter. We have to bring in the Miami team. We'll bring him in.
03:49In case he breaks the first perimeter, then we'll have the second perimeter.
03:52When our subject steps out of the building, the goal is that the subject does not hit his car.
04:00We grab the subject, we search him, we cuff him, put him in the car, and we're gone. Clear and simple.
04:07This will be a shock to him, yes. Tomorrow morning will be a very shocking experience for him, yes.
04:26In Southern California, Officer HQ is attached to one of the busiest ICE facilities in the United States.
04:33We arrest individuals with criminal history on, I would say, daily basis. Numerous individuals.
04:39We're very, very busy. Being close to the border here in California, here in San Diego,
04:44we're just a few miles away from the world's largest land port, the San Isidro Port of Entry.
04:49The busiest, largest land port. So we deal with all this stuff on a daily basis.
04:55Keep in mind, we're dealing with individuals, perhaps sometimes with mental disabilities,
05:00with heavy criminal history, violent criminal history, assault, weapons history, molestation, children, that sort of stuff.
05:08So it could be very dangerous, or it could be just a very easy arrest.
05:13We don't know until it happens.
05:19HQ and his colleague Officer Sammy are processing a Mexican national in custody on a drugs offense.
05:25So the individual was apprehended at the port of entry for drug smuggling.
05:31He was taken to a local county jail where he was sent before a court and was sentenced.
05:38He was in county jail for about a year. We picked him up early this morning,
05:42and now we're beginning the process of potential removal from the country.
05:47We basically take his fingerprints, we submit them to this biometric system,
05:56and that's going to tell us, for one, that he's already been encountered by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
06:01And it's going to do a query, a search, and that's going to let us know if he had any other encounters,
06:07if he's had any criminal convictions or just entries into the United States.
06:11So it allows us to know his history.
06:14Sammy soon learns the serious nature of the crime. This is no street deal.
06:3211 kilograms of cocaine, that's worth up in the high dollars, especially the further they get into the U.S.
06:38Because of the seriousness of his offenses, I don't believe he will qualify to be released at this time,
06:45and he will end up at our detention center pending his immigration court hearing.
06:56The team need the man to undergo some further questioning.
06:59They want to know where he got the drugs and if he's linked to some bigger players.
07:03It's early morning in Florence, Arizona. The local special response, or SRT team, is being briefed about a flight.
07:18So we got an HRT this morning. We're doing a removal flight. Flight time's at 0730, so we got plenty of time.
07:26We're not anticipating any problems. Let's do it.
07:33The subjects of the removals have all exhausted their appeals against removal from the United States.
07:38All are criminals and are classified as high risk.
07:41So as these guys come out, we'll be grabbing them one by one, patting them down,
07:47and putting the top portion of the wrap on, leg shackles, and the handcuffs.
07:54And then we'll load them on the bus and on our way to Mesa Gateway.
07:59The transports travel in convoy to avoid any possibility of interception.
08:22Shift right one. On this one, there's approximately five vehicles in this SHRC,
08:32which is a special high risk charter flight.
08:35When we get to Mesa Gateway, we'll have another SRT team from Dallas, Texas,
08:42that will be flying with these individuals.
08:44And you're kind of shocked at what some of these guys are capable of doing to other individuals.
08:52Of course, you know, it is sad when you have an individual that is separated from his family due to his actions.
09:03That also happens with United States citizens that are separated from their families when they commit crimes.
09:10They go to prison for so many years.
09:13But, you know, there's many people that come into the United States legally,
09:19and they do it the right way, and that's the only way that should be done.
09:29This morning we have eight folks that are from either Gambia or the Ivory Coast.
09:33They are all failure to comply, and what that means is ICE has attempted to remove them in the past
09:38via commercial aircraft, and either the subjects have refused to board the aircraft with physical force,
09:44or caused such a disturbance on the aircraft.
09:46We've been asked to deboard the aircraft and get off the plane.
09:50So ICE has taken the steps to charter an aircraft, where we will put these individuals on
09:55and have ICE officers escort them back to their native countries.
09:58You always have to prepare for the unknown.
10:00These folks, again, have violent histories.
10:03This is the last stop in the United States form.
10:05So you always have to be cautious of either gang members or family members
10:09that may try to do something to free them at the last moment.
10:12The plane is due to leave at 0730.
10:15Within 24 hours, the men will have been repatriated to West Africa.
10:19But officers have just encountered a major problem.
10:22It's 4 a.m. in Miami.
10:33Carlos and the team are preparing themselves ahead of this morning's operation.
10:37All right, guys. Our target should be home right now.
10:42He's been home every day around this time.
10:44But most likely, we won't see him until 10 o'clock.
10:46So be prepared for a long surveillance day.
10:48Coop's going to have eyes.
10:50As soon as he says he sees the guys, I want Team 5 to start moving on foot
10:54and everyone else to do a slow roll in.
10:56As soon as we get up to the guy, we all collapse on him,
10:59and hopefully we have a safe takedown, all right?
11:01Waking up at 4 in the morning is a daily routine for me.
11:09It's not too many jobs where you can literally make a difference on a daily basis.
11:14You know, I get to wake up every morning and take criminals out of our community.
11:21For ICE officers, it's a short drive to the home of Elias de Oliveira Campos,
11:26the man who's been masquerading as a plastic surgeon.
11:30He's pretending to be a doctor,
11:33and he's going around putting silicone injections in people's faces,
11:36and this poor lady went to his clinic thinking that she is going to get Botox injections,
11:43and now she has permanent disfigurement in her face,
11:46and she deals with pain, very bad pain on a daily basis.
11:51The team has set up its stakeout at Elias Campos' address.
12:01Officer Cooper has line of sight to his apartment.
12:04See where those lights are on the first floor and the second floor?
12:07That second floor, that's his actual door.
12:10Cooper's literally right in front of it, and as soon as he calls it out, we're just going to start rolling.
12:16The people in the back, those two guys, they'll come out and they'll try to stop him from running back towards his door.
12:25If he ran back towards his door, slams the door in our face, it's game over for us.
12:30It's now just a matter of waiting.
12:40It's 7.15. A female has just left the apartment.
12:44His wife just left. I was expecting that she typically goes to work around 7, 7.30.
12:49You know, he's probably selling her dream too.
12:51She's got this handsome guy who drives around in a Mercedes.
12:54Who knows what he tells her? She probably believes he's a real doctor.
12:58Two hours later, there's movement at the apartment.
13:03A man approaches the stairs, shaking two cans.
13:06It appears to be spray paint, and he is walking back upstairs to the door.
13:17That maintenance man was just allowed in, so that's a good thing, because at least we know there's someone inside, and we assume it's our target.
13:23Yeah, we'll call it lucky, even though we've been out here six hours. Lucky would have been if he did it at 7.30.
13:31Officer Cooper has spotted the target at the apartment.
13:34He left the door open for a little while. We saw him at the door, but then he just shut the door, and I'm not sure what he's doing at this moment.
13:42The wait continues. Carlos is unsure if his target is going to appear at all.
13:51Tucson, Arizona. The target? A 21-year-old convicted human trafficker.
13:57Human trafficking is the trade of humans, most commonly for the purpose of forced labor, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or their criminal associates.
14:06Government and NGO statistics indicate that the magnitude of forced labor surpasses that of forced prostitution in Mexico.
14:16Groups considered most vulnerable to human trafficking in Mexico include women, children, indigenous persons, and undocumented migrants.
14:24Mexican trafficking victims are also subjected to conditions of forced labor in domestic servitude, street banking, and undocumented construction work in both the United States and Mexico.
14:37The officer briefs the ICE team about possible escape routes the suspect could take if he sees them and flees.
14:43We're going to be making an entry to the main door. As you consent, we need to cover the back and the east side of the house because this is a short fence here.
14:54We don't want him dumping that fence and making an escape to this side of here.
14:59We're all going to be using comms on Boat School 4.
15:02If we have an emergency, we need to, at some point, go to a hospital.
15:05We're always going to be going to Banners University Medical Center at 1501 North Campbell Avenue in Tucson, Arizona.
15:11Officers can't take any chances when it comes to firepower.
15:21This is a pretty standard lockbox that we use for a sedan.
15:24This is a standard-issue government M4 carbine rifle, 30-round magazine.
15:31This is actually a model that's made by FN, a pretty good piece.
15:37It's got a light here, collapsible stock, aim point red dot sight right here.
15:45And then if that ever goes down, it's got what they call a pop-up backup iron sights.
15:52This would be my body armor.
15:55On my vest, I've also got two pairs of handcuffs here, a multi-tool, a flashlight, extra magazine for the pistol, my OC spray, and I keep an extra mag for my rifle right here.
16:10This is what I consider my enforcement vest or my running vest.
16:14I call it that because I keep it as lightweight as possible.
16:18And then underneath here, I keep my entry vest.
16:21And that is what I would use if I was going to be going into a hardened structure.
16:28And that's this one right here.
16:30As you can see, I've got more ammunition on this.
16:33It's a ton heavier, but if I had to be in a shootout or a firefight, I would much rather have this on.
16:38So you just have to kind of weigh your threats and weigh the possibilities of what you think might happen that day.
16:44And that's kind of how I choose what gear I'm going to be wearing.
16:47For today's operation, this one's going to stay in here.
16:51And I'm going to go ahead and go with my lighter set up.
17:03ICE officers must train to a higher standard than regular law enforcement police.
17:09Each officer must fire their weapons four times a year and reach a designated qualifying score to remain operational.
17:18At this time, load and make ready one 12-round magazine.
17:25Go!
17:27Move!
17:33Today, so I'm doing my quarterly qualifying qualifications.
17:36It's scheduled every quarter.
17:38Never missed.
17:39Come over here.
17:40We check in with the firearm instructors, supervisors.
17:44So today, we'll be shooting very up close.
17:46We'll be shooting from behind, simulating a barrier on the left and right, and also going from the knee.
17:51Everything is timed.
17:52We'll shoot with our strong hand, weak hand.
17:54We try to hit all aspects of marksmanship, but we're out here.
17:57Going hot.
17:59Right here.
18:00Let's hear those police calls.
18:01Go!
18:02Police!
18:06Checkpoint!
18:10The perfect SRT operator not only is a good deportation officer within enforcement removal operations,
18:15but it's also a person that can understand what is needed inside the community and show that restraint,
18:22along with having the high skill and mentality to perform in a highly delicate situation.
18:27Anytime that there's a use of force and the special response teams are for that high-level use of force,
18:32they need to know when to be able to do what they need to do and when not to.
18:34Approximately every, like, two to three months, we put them in a special high-risk charter,
18:38which will be them traveling across the world for anywhere between 8 to 24 hours,
18:44where they have to sit and watch detainees on flights.
18:48We also have operations here where we issue 1326, which is reentry after deportation criminal warrants,
18:53in which case we need to be able to either go into the houses or have a high-risk stop.
18:58We also use them for any type of issues when it comes to a detention facility and also for security in our building.
19:06In San Diego, the team carries out a dummy run.
19:12They're getting ready outside. They're lined up in the stack, as we call it.
19:17They can make the knock and announce, you know, identify themselves as police at the door.
19:23Police report! Come to the door!
19:29That time has lapsed. Now they're going to open the door with a proper tool.
19:43The team has now came in.
19:45They're going to pretty much, pretty much scan the area and see what, see what there is in the immediate room that they're in now,
19:52as you see them right there, pretty much positioning themselves,
19:57identifying, you know, who's got what, the closed door, the open door.
20:02Support one.
20:04Moving.
20:09That door to the right. Moving.
20:12Get the left.
20:14Clear. Support. Support two.
20:17Support two.
20:19Support two.
20:21Check the door.
20:23Door check. All clear.
20:26Clear right. All clear. Last room.
20:28Last room.
20:33Doors are open. You need at least two. Somebody go in with you.
20:37You can't go in by yourself, so that's why the third man was waiting outside the door,
20:40outside the door, waiting for that support. So as you notice, that number four guy came in, he was able to go inside after that.
20:47All clear. Last room.
20:51Back in Tucson, Officer Peter is en route to pick up the human trafficker.
20:56And I'm going to set up where he told me to, which is right behind the eye.
21:02So Ricky's going to have the eye, and we're going to pull surveillance until roughly 7 p.m.
21:10Turn right onto East Cayce.
21:12And the destination is on your left.
21:17Officer Peter describes the suspect as a coyote.
21:20A coyote, somebody that knows the path, knows the trails, and they get paid by the head, meaning by the individual body that they move, by the cartels.
21:37And to get people basically to what they call a loadout spot, which is where a vehicle will come and they'll get in.
21:45And then the dude will either get his own ride back or maybe just walk back and then get another load and keep on doing it.
21:52Apparently, it looks like this guy got caught at it.
21:55People see ice at their door, they just won't open the door, period.
21:59And that went on for years with Telemundo and all these other networks and advocacy groups letting them know, hey, you don't have to answer the door.
22:06Which I don't have a problem with because they don't if it's an administrative warrant.
22:11You can arrest people on an administrative warrant all day as long as they're in public.
22:15But, you know, a man's home is his castle, as they say.
22:18And that is the most difficult place to get access to, which it should be, which it should be.
22:25We are a country of laws. We have a Fourth Amendment.
22:26And, you know, that's another misconception a lot of people have.
22:29They think, well, this guy's an illegal alien. He doesn't have constitutional rights.
22:33That's absolutely not true. The Constitution covers anybody on this soil.
22:37It doesn't matter where you were born at.
22:40So, you know, for people to think that is actually kind of misguided as well.
22:46And you have to keep all those things in mind when you're out here working.
22:49The activities of ICE and its enforcement and removal operations is not without controversy.
22:57Don't think twice, melt the ICE. Don't think twice, melt the ICE.
23:03ICE as an institution is very recent. Since only 2003 or so, we had this institution become really rogue.
23:10One of the most distrustful, one of the most duplicitous institutions in the American government.
23:15People are not always well informed about what we do.
23:20People sometimes think that we're out there just to go grab these people who are here illegally trying to make a better life for themselves,
23:28and remove them, deport them, and we treat them in the worst possible ways.
23:33You see a lot of the quote-unquote bad that ICE does, which is, you know, the perception people have,
23:41but people don't always see the good that we do, too.
23:43Under Obama, there was some discretion.
23:47Where you're working at a food processing plant, could we go through all this process?
23:52Yes, we probably could. Are you a priority? Do we want to separate you from your family? No.
23:57Since 2017, everyone is fair game.
24:02ICE in general, whether it be Homeland Security Investigations or myself within Enforcement Removal Operations,
24:08target for the criminal element within the United States.
24:12If you are the person that jumps to the border and gets away from the Border Patrol and finds his life all well and good inside the United States,
24:21you probably will never have a contact with Enforcement Removal Operations.
24:24I have gone to the border, too, in El Paso and Tucson. I've witnessed what they go through. There's no place to go. They have to leave their country. And we should be a little bit more humanitarian in the way we're treating them.
24:38It is illegal to come to the country. Illegally. Jumping the fence. Violating your visa. That is what our job is meant for.
24:47But it is not something we go and attack every day. About 60% of our population is going to be someone that's come in contact with the police or has some type of criminal background.
24:56Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It's an out of control road agency with little accountability that is tearing the fabric of our immigrant community apart.
25:11In San Diego, officers HQ and Sammy are questioning the Mexican National who's in custody on drug smuggling offenses.
25:17He's claiming he got the job online.
25:26Practically, as you can see that with what's happening on the Facebook page, there are things that are cheating on you.
25:33There came a person who said he was taking things from here to there.
25:40And that's how they were cheating on me. And they took my car to take photos to ensure that I was going to return.
25:50And that's where they put drugs on me when I crossed.
25:53The subject alleged that he was contacted by somebody on Facebook, a social media platform, just to bring in what he thought was miscellaneous items.
26:02He didn't question anything about it. He just accepted the offer. He claims he was going to get paid $300 to just bring anything.
26:11My experience, I also know that sometimes that tends to be not true, simply because of the fact that he allegedly brought cocaine on with him.
26:20And knowing what these guys bring up, cocaine, they just don't give to anybody on the first time.
26:26So it's a little bit hard for me to believe that he didn't know what he was bringing up.
26:30Philadelphia, the target, a 36-year-old Mexican national in the U.S. illegally and a known drug trafficker.
26:53All right, guys, we're going to have a pre-op brief for operation tomorrow.
27:00After coming into the United States illegally the first time, he got into the drug trafficking business.
27:05He ultimately got two convictions. One, he got probation. The second one, he got five years incarceration in state penitentiary.
27:12At the conclusion of his five-year sentence, he came into ICE custody and we removed him back to Mexico as an aggravated felon.
27:20Well, guess what? He's back again. All right. We have information that puts him in South Jersey at this time.
27:27So I don't think we're going to just show up when he's working. The kitchen area locks from inside the restaurant and out the back.
27:35So we don't want him to give him the opportunity to lock himself into that kitchen.
27:40So I think the plan will be to pick him off either as he's getting dropped off at the business or just shortly after he comes out of the house.
27:49At Mesa Gateway Airport, Phoenix, a plane charter to deport eight African nationals is still on the runway.
28:02Departure time had been 7.30 a.m., but ICE officers have run into diplomatic problems.
28:08The Gambian Consulate is holding up the entire operation.
28:13We were just told that the Gambian Consulate wanted to talk to a couple of the individuals that are getting removed.
28:19Fortunately, last minute there was some issues with the landing permits in the Ivory Coast.
28:24So currently the aircraft crew as well as ICE air operations is working through diplomatic channels to try to get those landing permits approved.
28:34You've got to be fluid in this job. You're supposed to be at a certain place at a certain time,
28:38and then you could be there waiting for a couple of hours, minutes, depends on the issue that arises.
28:45If permissions don't go through, the plane and the passengers could be stuck in the Arizona desert for the foreseeable future.
28:51In Miami, the stakeout for the phony plastic surgeon is now over six hours old.
29:05Subject opened the sliding glass door, took a look out.
29:09Subject just came out of the door, out of his apartment, and he's locking that door as if he's going to come down to the car.
29:23All right, everybody.
29:25You ready?
29:26Better call.
29:36All right, I had to grab over here.
29:38Come on. Turn around. Turn around.
29:51Cheers, bro.
29:52We got our target in custody. We're placing them in handcuffs right now. We're just doing a safety check with the officers.
30:10So yeah, everything went well. Luckily, there was no incidents.
30:13Took a little while, but it worked out for some time. That's just how it goes.
30:16Yeah.
30:17Part of the nature of the beast, part of the job, so.
30:19Ote Mesa Detention Center, San Diego. Officer James explains the setup and the protocol.
30:38The Ote Mesa facility is an ICE detention center for detainees at multiple stages of the immigration process,
30:44from their initial appearance with an asylum officer, all the way through their complete hearings with an immigration judge.
30:51We have 69 different countries represented here at Ote today.
30:56258 from Mexico, 251 from Cameroon, 90 from China, 70 from Honduras, 63 from El Salvador.
31:04We also have 55 Indian nationals and 53 Guatemalans.
31:08We're here to make sure that they're treated in a fair, humane way and make it through the legal process that the government has provided.
31:14The individuals will go through the intake process here in this area.
31:18Once they get to their housing unit, then they're going to be scheduled for an interview with an asylum officer if they claim fear.
31:24So they have their interview with an asylum officer.
31:26If they have a positive determination of fear, what will then happen is they'll get referred to the immigration judge for a full hearing,
31:31where they'll go through that process.
31:34If they get a negative determination of fear, then they will have the opportunity to request a review by an immigration judge
31:41and have that review done, and if they lose that one, then they'll be removed.
31:45Well, if they lose their case, then they are going to be returned back to their home country.
31:48There's multiple ways that can be done.
31:49If they have a criminal record, then they'll be escorted by one of our officers.
31:52If they don't, we put them on a plane and we'll verify their departure from the last U.S. port.
31:57We have flights, regular flights, down to Central America.
32:00And in the case of any Mexican nationals who are in custody that are being removed,
32:04we take them down to the port of entry and we return them over to the Mexican officials.
32:09In Phoenix, Arizona, a message suddenly comes across the radio.
32:18A vehicle just pulled up to the residence, so maybe this is somebody that's going to pick this guy up.
32:22There you go, so a car just pulled up to the house and he's watching it right now.
32:28This is a young male with a white shirt, white hat.
32:32Could be our target.
32:34We need to follow this vehicle.
32:36It's going to come out of the cul-de-sac.
32:38Because it could be our target.
32:40It matched the description of our target.
32:44But I couldn't see the face.
32:46The same height, skinny, 150.
32:48We don't even know.
32:52The pursuit is on.
32:57So we're going to go ahead and try to get a positive ID.
33:02And if this is the target, we'll go ahead and conduct a traffic stop.
33:06And hopefully, okay, they're going to go ahead and make the stop come out here.
33:13The signal to move in on the suspect is given.
33:22Keep your hands while I can see them.
33:24Step out, step out.
33:30Okay, so we just conducted a vehicle stop.
33:32It turned out the passenger of this vehicle was our target that we were looking for.
33:36We placed him in restraints.
33:37Searched him for weapons or hard objects.
33:40And now he's being transported to our holding facility.
33:45And he'll be processed from there.
33:47The bigger the deal is, the bigger the money you make.
33:57You know?
33:58The bigger the people you sent, the bigger money it is.
34:01The more you have in the car, the bigger you get a check.
34:04Like, for two, it was $3,000.
34:07Plus $1,000, they put on your pocket for expenses.
34:13And then they buy you the car.
34:15You know?
34:16Any car you want.
34:18In Phoenix, Arizona, Officer Alejandro briefs his team about three dangerous fugitives that have evaded capture.
34:26All right, good morning, guys.
34:27As you guys know, this morning, we will be targeting for arrest three targets.
34:32The second target is a 36-year-old Mexican male who has been removed as well on three occasions.
34:40The ICE officers are on the move.
34:43Once we get closer, we'll know where people are positioned up.
34:48And we'll make a determination where we need to post in preparation for the departure of this individual.
34:55Repeat offenders are a top priority for ICE officers.
34:59Anyone previously deported by ICE is committing a felony offense if they re-enter the United States.
35:08The suspect is spotted getting into a two-tone pickup truck.
35:10It's old box-style, S-150.
35:12It's 1995, I believe.
35:13It's two-tone.
35:14It's got a brown strip just above the right board, and it's all white.
35:18It looks like the tank will drive.
35:19With a positive ID, the officers begin pursuit.
35:24We'll be reinstating his previous removal.
35:37There's a criminal implication in this case because he is unlawfully re-entered after having been previously deported.
35:43And that is a felony offense.
35:45What we'll do is present the case criminally through the United States Attorney's Office and Federal District Court.
35:55And seek a conviction under 1326, illegal re-entry after deportation.
36:01The team take the suspect out of the vehicle without incident.
36:16Put your hands up.
36:17Put your hands up.
36:18Put your hands up.
36:19Put your hands up.
36:20Put your hands up.
36:21Good morning, sir.
36:22We are immigration officials.
36:23Okay?
36:24Okay?
36:25Okay?
36:26So...
36:27Sir, you don't manage it?
36:28Yes?
36:29Yes?
36:30Okay.
36:31After a search for any weapons, the suspect is brought back for processing.
36:36You...
36:37Can you take the truck with everything and the trailer?
36:40Yes.
36:41Do you have a license to drive?
36:42Yes.
36:43He stopped on the street.
36:45One of our officers approached him on the driver's side, identified him.
36:50The wife is an individual that we're going to exercise favorable prosecutorial discretion on her.
36:57She does have the children.
36:59The children were probably en route to school, so we're going to allow the wife to continue on her way with the children.
37:07Back at the processing station, officers make a startling discovery about the suspect's background.
37:18The individual that was driving the landscaping truck that was accompanied by his wife and his children, he's actually one of the targets that we had already identified as the documented gang member.
37:30He was documented as a member of the Wetback Power 8th Street Gang, and so it's great to have obviously been able to take him off of the streets and taken him, you know, outside of the community.
37:47ICE officers have actively targeted organized gangs in the United States as part of Operation Community Shield since 2005.
37:56By 2011, over 33,000 gangs were believed to be operating in the country.
38:05In 1999, Hispanic Americans accounted for 47% of all U.S. gang members, African Americans 34%, and non-Hispanic whites 13%.
38:25Many street gangs actively recruit among illegal immigrants.
38:36Nearly 8,000 street gang members have been arrested by ICE during the course of operations since 2005.
38:46Back in Philadelphia, the team make their way to the suspect's last known whereabouts.
38:51The truck's leaving. Looks like the brother-in-law is driving. He put the kid in the back. I assume the Tango got in the passenger seat.
39:00We think that the target is in the passenger seat, but there's also a kid in the car, possibly two years old, so we don't want to make this encounter with a child in the car if we don't have to.
39:14So we're going to try to follow the vehicle here and see where it goes.
39:19Each pursuit is different. And with a child in the car, this one gives officers something completely different to think about.
39:28Officers need to exercise extreme care.
39:37Officers need to exercise extreme care.
39:47Suddenly, the order comes through on the radio to apprehend the suspect.
39:51Stop right there. Stop right there.
39:56Stop right there. Stop right there.
40:06Police, let me see your hands. Keep your hands up. Keep your hands up.
40:08Open the door!
40:09Don't move. I know you got a baby in the car, okay?
40:11Put your hands up.
40:12Get your hands up.
40:13Up here.
40:14Who would be on the door?
40:15Let me excuse my baby.
40:16Who would be on the door?
40:17Who would be on the door?
40:18Don't move, alright?
40:19Don't move, alright?
40:20Okay.
40:21You understand what's going on?
40:24All we're worried about is your daughter, okay?
40:27That's all we're worried about right now. That's all I'm worried about?
40:30Do you have any guns, drugs, anything in the vehicle?
40:33No?
40:34Okay.
40:35Do you have permission to be in the United States?
40:37Okay.
40:38But you've never been arrested before, right?
40:40All right.
40:41Now, Officer Bryan must make another snap decision to detain the driver of the vehicle or let them go on their way.
40:48The driver of the vehicle, he is also unlawfully in the United States.
40:53We're taking his information so that we can put it in our report.
40:56He has a young daughter in the vehicle, so we're not going to take any action on him.
41:00We're going to continue to process the individual here.
41:05In a second, we're going to Mirandize him because there will be a criminal prosecution.
41:09And once we can get this wrapped up, we're going to get out of here as quickly as we can.
41:19Back in processing, the subject admits to his criminal past, but claims he's just in the United States to work.
41:39When asked what he will do when he gets deported, he says he'll come straight back again, but this time it will be different.
41:46Officer Bryan reflects on his decision to apprehend the suspect today.
42:02All law enforcement officers are cognizant of minors and whenever we can make an arrest without minors present, obviously we try to do that.
42:11Today, it didn't work out that way, but we did everything we could to keep the minor safe and the minor's father, you know, there with the minor to handle the situation.
42:22He, too, is unlawfully in the country and, you know, we're going to process his information, but arresting him was not the right call today because, you know, he's got to be there to take care of his child.
42:35In Miami, Elias, the fake plastic surgeon, is being processed.
43:05There was an ex-sociedade that I had before.
43:09Before I had ex-sociedade.
43:11There was Cerrado Access Sociedade.
43:13And these people are trying to kill me.
43:15They've already tried to kill me four times.
43:17And they've already put me in jail.
43:19Ficou maldade?
43:20Yes.
43:21You know, he's going to be pleading for sympathy.
43:24But I've talked to many of his victims already.
43:26I've seen pictures.
43:29This is not a good guy.
43:30You know, I'm happy that I took him off the streets.
43:32And they always have their side of the story.
43:35But then you have the truth.
43:37And sympathy does not equate to innocence.
43:41So in this case, I'm happy that we got him in custody.
43:44And hopefully we can affect his removal.
43:4910 a.m. in Phoenix.
43:50As the Arizona heat is already in the 80s, three hours behind schedule, ICE officers finally get the go-ahead for the departure of the eight African deportees to be repatriated to Gambia and the Ivory Coast.
44:02The holdup has caused an expensive refueling and a lot of hanging around.
44:09Now it's time to get the passengers on board.
44:12We're going to drive the van over to the aircraft and then we're going to unload them one by one.
44:19Another individual is going to confirm the identity of each person by name and a number and photo ID.
44:24And then we'll board them on the plane and so on with the next person.
44:31But there's another problem.
44:33One of the passengers is refusing to get on the plane.
44:36So we're almost ready to go.
44:41When we're working on the landing permits, the detainee became uncooperative and is now refusing to board the aircraft.
44:47He is claiming he cannot go back to Gambia because he wants a second chance and he doesn't have any money to start over there.
44:54And is making threats that he will not go back to Gambia and he will resist all efforts with physical violence.
45:00And staff from behind me now speaking with him, attempting to de-escalate the situation.
45:05The man who has a significant criminal history has exhausted all of his legal appeals in an attempt to remain in the U.S.
45:25If we can't talk him off the ledge here, staff will use the least amount of force necessary to get him on the aircraft, secure him to the aircraft and make sure that he's safe.
45:34With time running out, the team are left with no choice.
45:44Now over four hours late, the ICE team needs to ensure the plane takes off, but the prisoner isn't going easily.
46:04Despite all the ruckus, the flight is still carrying on with this mission and we're going to repatriate these folks from the native countries.
46:10Help us through the native countries.
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