SAN ANTONIO (NewsNation) — The Department of Homeland Security is now homing in on the most dangerous threats: gang members, repeat offenders and people tied to international criminal networks.
The results are already showing on the ground. One of the most high-profile removals so far is Merwil Alberto Gutierrez Flores, a suspected Tren de Aragua associate. He was arrested in New York after allegedly bringing a loaded gun onto school property along with illegal ammunition and stolen property.
Flores entered the U.S. illegally through El Paso in 2023 and was released under Biden-era policy.
This year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported him directly to CECOT, El Salvador’s maximum-security prison known for housing terrorists and cartel leaders.
CBP arrest 266 gang members this year
It’s not an isolated case. According to new Customs and Border Protection data, 266 gang members have been apprehended so far this fiscal year, including affiliates of MS-13, 18th Street, Paisas and Sureños. That number is current through April, and it continues to rise.
The pressure is still mounting. In Dana Point, California, ICE arrested a known MS-13 member wanted for a double homicide in El Salvador. He’s currently awaiting removal.
This marks a broader shift in DHS strategy; the agency isn’t just tracking immigration status anymore, it’s targeting intentions.
DHS targets ‘worst of the worst’ in Hawaii
The enforcement is expanding beyond the mainland. ICE recently conducted multiple arrests in Hawaii, a state often seen as removed from the immigration front lines. Among those taken into custody: a man convicted of felony assault and kidnapping, another serving a 10-year sentence for a violent attack and a meth trafficker with a federal conviction.
Agents also executed search warrants and conducted welfare checks on minors as part of what DHS calls a “surgical strategy” to root out high-risk offenders, wherever they are.
From small towns to tourist destinations, DHS says no location is off-limits, and no threat will go unchecked.