Washington, D.C.–The United States has 406 fewer foreign fugitives on the loose thanks to the work of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) National Fugitive Operations Program (NFOP) team members. The number of foreign fugitives they have arrested has increased from 74 in fiscal year 2011 to 406 in fiscal year 2016.
The ERO (Enforcement and Removal Operations) National Fugitive Operations Program, originally established in 2003, prioritizes its efforts on removable aliens who are national security and public safety threats, including transnational gang members, convicted criminals, sex offenders, and foreign fugitives wanted for crimes committed abroad.
ICE credits its success on the combined efforts of the U.S. National Central Bureau-Interpol Washington, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection for helping forge and maintain effective partnerships.
ERO officers assigned to Interpol’s Washington, DC office, for example, work alongside officers, attorneys and analysts from other DHS components, the Department of Justice and the Department of State on a daily basis. Together, they work to confirm identities and criminal warrants with foreign countries and HSI abroad, provide fugitive lead referrals to officers and agents in the field, provide assistance in obtaining travel documents, and coordinate with Justice and State on extradition matters.
Interpol uses a color-coded system of notices and alerts, as well as an advanced, secure communications network to share intelligence and analysis, informing the 190 member nations of a variety of potential threats. The most well-known of these are the organization’s red notices, which have been described as the closest thing to an international arrest warrant in use today.
Among those located and arrested by ERO and its Fugitive Operations Teams this year was Zi Ming Zhou, 45, of China, who was arrested February 11 in East Brunswick, New Jersey, wanted in China for bank fraud.
The ICE National Criminal Analysis and Targeting Center (NCATC) provides critical investigative support for daily arrest efforts, including criminal and intelligence analysis from a variety of sources. The NCATC provides comprehensive analytical support to aid the at-large enforcement efforts of all ICE components.
