This weekend, the Washington Post lamented the success of Donald Trump's immigration enforcement by claiming that it has resulted in record numbers of 'non-criminal' illegals being deported. As I wrote yesterday, the real story was that the Department of Homeland Security has found, detained, and deported record numbers of illegal aliens overall – and almost two-thirds of them had separate criminal records by WaPo's own numbers. That's more than twice the average rate among American adults (29.5% according to PolitiFact).
Well, the narrative minders at the WaPo had better prepare themselves for more disappointment. Today, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced the results of a thirty-day operation in New York dubbed "Rotten Apple." ICE agents received no cooperation from state or local law enforcement but still succeeded in arresting nearly 2,200 illegal aliens – many with significant criminal records:
.@SecMullinDHS on ICE operations in New York: “Over the last 30 days, Operation Rotten Apple has taken OVER 2,100 criminals OFF our streets.” pic.twitter.com/fIM0WzAbVN
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) September 1, 2026
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) snared nearly 2,200 illegal migrants — including convicted murderers, rapists and drug traffickers — in a monthlong sweep across New York state, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced Tuesday.
Agents nabbed 2,197 people between July 27 and Aug. 29 as part of “Operation Rotten Apple” — which Mullin noted was conducted “with no help” from either Mayor Zohran Mamdani or Gov. Kathy Hochul.
“Operation Rotten Apple did what sanctuary politicians in New York City and the state of New York refuse to do: made the Empire State safer,” Mullin said in a statement.
“We won’t let sanctuary politicians stand in our way. If you’re a state or local politician, your best bet is to cooperate with us so we can all make America safe again,” he added.
DHS published a statement to the media emphasizing the public-safety issues created by "sanctuary" cities and states that refuse to cooperate with ICE. Border czar Tom Homan took aim at Hochul and Mamdani for their protection of criminals at the expense of the citizens and legal residents in their jurisdictions:
“Operation Rotten Apple got some of the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens including murderers, kidnappers, and rapists off New York streets. ICE’s efforts to remove public safety threats from American communities has contributed to the largest decrease in violent crime in American history,” said Border Czar Tom Homan. “Democratic politicians in New York and elsewhere say that they care about public safety, but won’t let immigration law enforcement officers into their jails to take criminals into custody; instead they release them to their streets. It makes no sense. President Trump is a law and order president who delivers on his promises, so if state and local officials will not safeguard their communities against lawbreakers and threats, then we will.”
Who were the criminals that got taken off the streets in Operation Rotten Apple? DHS offered a "worst of the worst" list in its statement, emphases in original:
- Bogdan Detrovich Gren, an illegal alien from Ukraine, whose criminal history includes convictions for kidnapping, abduction resulting in death, criminal possession of a weapon, and murder.
- Andreas Bernal Chiquito, an illegal alien from Colombia, whose criminal history includes arrests for course of sexual conduct against a child and act in manner to injure child less than 17.
- Noel Celestino Lopez Martinez, an illegal alien from Mexico, whose criminal history includes an arrest for first-degree rape: forcible compulsion.
- Palvinder Singh, an illegal alien from India, whose criminal history includes a conviction for rape in Germany.
- Carlos Mendez-Acosta, an illegal alien from Venezuela, whose criminal history includes a conviction for rape.
- Chhun Kim Pril, an illegal alien from Cambodia, whose criminal history includes a conviction for drug trafficking.
- Danilo Antonio Rodriguez, an illegal alien from the Dominican Republic, whose criminal history includes a conviction for conspiracy to distribute with intent to distribute heroin.
- Hussein Faiad Shaban, an illegal alien from Sierra Leone, whose criminal history includes convictions for burglary: dwelling causing injury, first-degree assault, criminal possession of a controlled substance, and possession of burglary tool.
- Jorge Alphonso Diego-Martinez, an illegal alien from Honduras, whose criminal history includes a conviction for possession with intent to distribute.
- Loi Nguyen, an illegal alien from Vietnam, whose criminal history includes a conviction for burglary, possession of stolen property, damaging property, larceny, burglary tools – possession, cocaine possession, and receiving a stolen vehicle
The question here, as always, is why Democrats create policies that allow known predators like these to go free when all that's needed to make their streets safe is normal cooperation with ICE. The answer: Progressives like the conceit of posing as empaths while allowing predators access to a wide class of victims. And then Protection Racket Media outlets like the Washington Post try to claim that too many illegal aliens are being detained without prior criminal records, ignoring that their presence in the country is enough for detention and deportation in the first place.
The good news is that Trump and Mullin are determined to reset the incentives around illegal immigration by enforcing the law. The better news is that support for deportation remains at a majority. And the best news is that the media's narrative manipulators have done nothing to change the above.