(NewsNation) — Four migrants who have previously been convicted of crimes involving the exploitation of children have been arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in New Jersey this month as part of an ongoing targeted enforcement operation, the agency announced.
ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations-Newark units have arrested Gerson Jose Saenz Umana, 27, of El Salvador; Javier Garcia Nicolasa, 42, of Mexico; Juan Villatoro Valle, 45, of El Salvador; and Reyes Peralta-Salazar, 38, of Mexico.
Garcia Nicolasa was convicted of endangering sexual conduct with a child by a caretaker on Dec. 1, 2023, ICE said in a news release. He was sentenced to three years in prison. Officials said he entered the U.S. illegally at an unknown time and location.
Saenz Umana is a registered sex offender who officials said has a sealed criminal history that involves the exploitation of a child.
Villatoro Valle was convicted of sexual assault involving a victim under the age of 13 in 2019, as well as aggravated criminal sexual assault and endangering with sexual conduct, ICE said. He was sentenced to five years in prison.
He reportedly entered the U.S. without inspection sometime before 2000 and was granted Temporary Protected Status in 2006, but his application for permanent residency was denied in 2009.
Peralta-Salazar was arrested in 2023 and was later convicted of criminal sexual conduct and endangering sexual conduct with a child, and was sentenced to six months in jail, federal officials said.
The operation, dubbed Operation Apex Predator, is a Department of Homeland Security Cyber Crimes Center Child Exploitation Investigations Unit initiative aimed at proactively targeting convicted criminal sex offenders in the United States.
All four migrants were required to be registered as sex offenders in New Jersey and are now being held in ICE custody pending court hearings.