Lead: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced on January 13, 2026, that agents arrested several individuals the agency described as “the worst of the worst” across multiple states, including a person convicted in a child‑pornography case. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) release reported dramatic year‑over‑year increases in attacks on ICE personnel: a 1,300% rise in assaults, a 3,200% rise in vehicle attacks, and an 8,000% rise in death threats. Arrests cited in the announcement included convictions for child pornography production and possession, aggravated assault, burglary and false imprisonment. DHS officials framed the operation as part of ongoing enforcement to remove convicted, noncitizen offenders from U.S. communities.
Key Takeaways
- ICE announced arrests on January 13, 2026, of multiple convicted noncitizen offenders across Virginia, Texas, New York and California.
- The DHS statement cites increases against ICE personnel: assaults up 1,300%, vehicle attacks up 3,200%, and death threats up 8,000% (period and baseline not specified in the release).
- Named arrestees include Denis Pop‑Cuz (Guatemala, age 20) convicted for possessing obscene material involving a minor and filming child pornography in Stafford, Virginia.
- Other named arrests: Josue Roa‑Bahena (Mexico) convicted of aggravated assault in Harris County, Texas; Shawn Lewis (Jamaica) convicted of burglary in Queens, New York.
- Carlos Alberto Alvarez Cuevas (Mexico) was named for a burglary conviction in Van Nuys, California; Sergio Salvador Salazar Sorto (El Salvador) for false imprisonment and battery in Los Angeles.
- DHS/ICE emphasized officer safety and said enforcement will continue despite the reported spike in threats and attacks against personnel.
- The release is an official DHS/ICE announcement; methodology for the percentage increases was not detailed in the statement.
Background
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) has for years prioritized the arrest and removal of noncitizen individuals convicted of serious crimes. That posture follows statutory directives and internal agency policies that place convicted aggravated felons and repeat offenders at the front of removal priorities. Over successive administrations, enforcement emphasis and resource levels have shifted; ICE public statements typically highlight arrests of convicted offenders to demonstrate progress on public‑safety objectives.
Recent years have also seen heightened scrutiny of ICE tactics and broader immigration policy, with advocates and some local governments contesting enforcement practices. High‑profile crime‑related arrests often draw immediate public attention and political commentary, and law enforcement agencies use such announcements both to report activity and to underscore threats faced by officers. DHS/ICE releases traditionally combine operational details (names, charges, locations) with broader claims about trends and risk to personnel.
Main Event
On January 13, 2026, DHS published a release listing arrests described as removing “the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens” from American communities. The release names five individuals arrested in separate operations across Virginia, Texas, New York and California and describes the convictions that led to their identification as removal priorities. ICE characterized one arrestee as a child‑pornography offender who produced and possessed obscene material involving a minor.
The agency highlighted violent incidents targeting ICE personnel as context for its enforcement posture, citing substantial percentage increases in assaults, vehicle attacks and death threats. ICE Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin was quoted in the release stressing that officers continued arrests despite these threats. The announcement framed the arrests as part of a broader enforcement campaign to protect neighborhoods by removing convicted noncitizen offenders.
The named detainees and convictions listed were: Denis Pop‑Cuz, 20, of Guatemala — convicted for possessing obscene material involving a minor and filming child pornography (Stafford, Virginia); Josue Roa‑Bahena — convicted of aggravated assault of a family member (Harris County, Texas); Shawn Lewis — convicted of burglary (Queens, New York); Carlos Alberto Alvarez Cuevas — convicted of burglary (Van Nuys, California); and Sergio Salvador Salazar Sorto — convicted of false imprisonment and battery (Los Angeles, California). The release did not provide sentencing dates or current custody locations for each individual.
Analysis & Implications
ICE’s announcement serves both operational and political functions: it reports recent arrests while reinforcing a narrative of rising danger to officers and the public. The dramatic percentage increases cited (1,300%, 3,200%, 8,000%) are attention‑grabbing, but without a disclosed baseline or time window these figures are difficult to interpret. Large percentage changes can result from small absolute numbers in the comparison period; readers should therefore seek the underlying counts and timeframes for full context.
From a policy perspective, the arrests underscore ongoing tensions between federal immigration enforcement priorities and communities or jurisdictions that limit cooperation with ICE. Removing convicted offenders is within ICE’s statutory remit, yet enforcement actions often raise local debates about public‑safety tradeoffs, resource allocation and the effects on families and communities where noncitizen residents live. The public messaging in the release aims to bolster support for continued enforcement by emphasizing perceived threats to officers and civilians.
Internationally and domestically, these operations can affect diplomatic and community relations, especially when arrestees are citizens of neighboring countries such as Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador. Consular notification and cooperation are standard parts of processing noncitizen detainees; differing diplomatic stances or bilateral expectations can shape case outcomes. The announcement may prompt renewed scrutiny from oversight bodies, immigrant‑rights groups and elected officials concerned about due process and proportionality.
Comparison & Data
| Metric | Reported Change (per DHS) |
|---|---|
| Assaults on ICE personnel | +1,300% |
| Vehicle attacks on agents | +3,200% |
| Death threats received | +8,000% |
The DHS release provides percentage increases but does not include the absolute counts or the baseline period used for comparison. That omission limits the ability to assess scale: a 1,300% increase could mean a rise from 1 to 14 incidents or from 100 to 1,400. For policymakers and the public, absolute numbers and the time window (e.g., year‑over‑year, month‑over‑month) are crucial to evaluate operational risk and resource needs. We asked DHS for the raw counts and methodology; absent that, the percentages should be interpreted cautiously.
Reactions & Quotes
ICE leadership framed the arrests and the sharp rise in threats as justification for continued enforcement of removal priorities and for officer safety measures. The following are brief excerpts from the DHS release; each quote is presented with surrounding context in the release.
“Despite a more than 1,300% increase in assaults against our law enforcement and an 8,000% increase in death threats, our officers continue to put their lives on the line to arrest the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens.”
Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, DHS (official statement)
The statement frames operational risk as escalating, and uses that framing to justify intensified removals. The release pairs these statistics with named arrests to illustrate its point; critics often respond that context and methodology are required to verify such claims.
“Yesterday’s arrests included a monster who was filming children being raped. Thanks to ICE law enforcement this sadistic criminal is out of American neighborhoods.”
Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, DHS (official statement)
This more charged language appeared in the release as a direct characterization of the child‑pornography case. The quote underscores the emotional and public‑safety rationale the agency used to explain the operation. External observers may note that such wording strengthens public support while also inviting scrutiny from civil‑liberties advocates about tone and process.
“We will not let violence stop us or slow us down from removing criminal illegal aliens from our communities.”
DHS/ICE leadership (official statement)
ICE emphasized persistence in enforcement despite threats. Independent analysts and local officials will likely watch for follow‑through on promised removals and for any changes in coordination with local law enforcement and judicial authorities.
Unconfirmed
- The DHS release does not specify the baseline period or absolute counts used to calculate the 1,300%, 3,200% and 8,000% increases.
- Details about sentencing dates, current detention locations and immigration court schedules for the named arrestees were not provided in the release.
- The release does not specify how ICE defines or compiles “vehicle attacks” or whether those incidents resulted in injuries or arrests.
Bottom Line
ICE’s January 13, 2026 announcement reports several arrests of convicted noncitizen offenders and highlights sharp percentage increases in attacks and threats against agency personnel. The names and convictions provided in the release are specific, but the statistical context is incomplete: absolute numbers and the time frame for the percentage changes were not disclosed. That gap matters because large percentage swings can be misleading without raw counts.
Readers should treat the named arrests as documented events reported by DHS while seeking additional data to fully assess trends in threats to ICE personnel and the scale of enforcement. For policymakers and oversight bodies, the appropriate next steps are to request the detailed counts, methodology and related case records to evaluate resource needs, officer safety measures and the broader public‑safety impact of removals.