Since President Donald Trump took office for the second time, federal immigration authorities began carrying out a blitz of high-profile arrests and deportations.
"Here in New York City this morning we are getting the dirtbags off these streets," Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in New York while overseeing the apprehension of immigrants accused of crimes.
Arrests of undocumented immigrants have been happening for years across administrations, usually off camera.
Scripps News compiled data from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and found that over 10 years, ICE took into custody an average of 350 migrants a day.
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During President Trump's first days in office, the pace has picked up to more than 791 arrests each day — with many more to come according to Tom Homan, the president's border czar.
"I think success is removing every criminal gang member out of this country, every public safety, threat, illegal alien," Homan said.
Aside from arrests, deportations were also common before Trump took office.
ICE removed 271,484 noncitizens in 2024, including 3,706 known or suspected gang members and 237 known or suspected terrorists.
Under Trump, the federal government has started using military planes for deportations.
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The Department of Homeland Security has not shared detailed information about who has been deported in recent days, but it is not just those with criminal rap sheets.
None of the 200 unauthorized immigrants sent to Colombia were criminals, a Colombian official said.
In another break from previous administrations, the Trump team is using images and videos of enforcement to send a message encouraging immigrants to leave voluntarily.
"One thing to keep in mind is that fear and anxiety and chaos are also tools of the mass deportation agenda," said Jennifer Koh, associate law professor at Pepperdine University's Caruso School of Law.
In previous years, ICE had prioritized deporting migrants with criminal convictions and charges. However, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said anyone in the country without documentation would now be considered a criminal and could face deportation.
