Op-ed views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author.

The law enforcement veteran discusses an erroneous report by the outlet proclaiming that arrested illegal aliens didn’t have “violent criminal offenses.”

Even as the federal authorities announced that the immigration crackdown is coming to a close in Minnesota after a huge success, some outlets can’t help but continue to dig their claws into ICE agents, just for the sake of attention.

This time it’s CBS. It recently published a report indicating that less than 14 percent of nearly 400,000 immigrants arrested by ICE had charges or convictions for violent criminal offenses. They got this information from a so-called “internal Department of Homeland Security document,” stating it as official news.

Homeland Security, however, was very quick to respond.

DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin called the report “inaccurate,” pointing out how the author of the article was holding back on reporting the serious crimes performed by some of these individuals, indicating they were “non-violent.” You’re kidding me.

“Drug trafficking, distribution of child pornography, burglary, fraud, DUI, embezzlement, solicitation of a minor, human smuggling are all categorized as ‘non-violent crimes’,” she noted on X. She then added that 70 percent of those illegal aliens arrested have pending criminal charges or prior convictions.

She went into further detail with the report’s inaccuracies, including a very glaring example. “By CBS’s standards, Edward Hernandez, who ICE arrested last week in Virginia, is a ‘non-criminal’ because he hasn’t been convicted in the United States. Never mind that he is an MS-13 member and confessed to murdering five people in El Salvador through shooting, torturing, stabbing, and dismemberment (including one victim who was alive).”

The official ICE X account also provided its own take on the report. “Here’s a more accurate headline, CBS. Nearly 70 percent of criminal aliens detained by ICE have pending charges or prior convictions. So-called ‘non-violent’ offenders include individuals charged (with the crimes above). Labeling these offenses as ‘non-violent’ does not mean they aren’t threats to public safety.”

And if you need a better look at the effectiveness of what ICE is doing with these arrests, look no further than the official ICE page, which highlights the arrests of the worst of the worst.

As expected, CBS News hasn’t responded to the comments made by ICE and the Department of Homeland Security, and, at this point, I doubt they will.

But it points out a glaring problem that continues to poke at ICE, even with what’s happening in Minnesota in the days ahead. Many outlets still see them as a threat to America, a “Gestapo,” if you will, because they feel they’re simply busting into homes and ripping people away from their families. That is not what is happening.

Research is going into each of these arrests. As you can see from the ICE page, they’re going after people who are doing dangerous harm to this country. Hurting citizens. Hunting after their children and using them for unspeakable acts. Even committing robbery, assault, and murder just to get their way.

It still boggles my mind that state leaders, like Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, still go out of their way to protect people like these. People, by the way, committing fraud in a billion-dollar real estate scheme that is costing taxpayers dearly.

Now that the operation in Minnesota is over – and, again, with great success – it’s time to just settle the dust and look at the facts. ICE is getting the work done. CBS can report all the inaccuracies it wants, but the proof is in showing just how many of these dangerous criminals are being sent home, out of our country. All the percentiles in the world won’t change that stat.

And their work is far from over, as they’re still continuing these arrests. Sadly, I suspect that news outlets will continue on their beat as well, reporting falsehoods and painting ICE as the dastardly villain tying the poor, innocent people to the train tracks.

Just a reminder not to take these news outlets at face value. What they feel is an “accurate” number could be anything but, and something they label as “non-violent” is certainly not the case. I seriously can’t believe they call something like assault on a child “non-violent.”

Get all the details, folks. They make a world of difference.

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Michael Letts

Michael A. Letts, Founder, President, and CEO of In-Vest USA, a national grassroots non-profit organization that is helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bullet-proof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs.

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