ICE agents conduct sweep through Worthington-Sioux Falls area

St. Paul, Minn. — Federal immigration officials say 36 illegal immigrants were arrested during a three-day sweep through the Worthington - Sioux Falls area last week.

Tim Counts, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the 36 were considered fugitives, because they were ignoring deportation orders handed down by immigration judges.

Counts said the sweep was carried out by one of 75 fugitive operations teams that specialize in such raids. He said more sweeps should be expected, because Congress has authorized the addition of 29 more teams this year.

"It offends people's basic sense of fairness that people who have had access to due process then thumb their noses at the judicial system. It's not fair and we are going to make sure that they leave the country the way they're supposed to," said Counts.

Counts said the sweep was unrelated to the case of a Guatemalan immigrant facing charges in the school bus crash that killed four children near Cottonwood last month.