More than 10,000 undocumented immigrants have been arrested in the LA area alone since June, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Authorities said many of those arrested were linked to serious violent crimes.
Those taken into custody included suspects tied to murder, kidnapping, sexual crimes, and armed robbery. DHS said the enforcement actions produced results despite violent resistance during recent operations.
In a statement released on December 11, 2025, DHS said some protesters in the LA area attacked federal agents with rocks and Molotov cocktails during immigration enforcement operations. The agency said the crackdown was still effective.
Tricia McLaughlin, an assistant secretary at DHS, said politicians including Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, and Karen Bass, the mayor of LA, have continued to criticize the enforcement efforts.
Nationwide, millions of undocumented immigrants have been removed from the United States since the Donald Trump administration, according to DHS. The agency announced on December 10, 2025, that more than 2.5 million people have left the country since January 2025.
Of those who departed, about 605,000 were forcibly deported, while roughly 1.9 million returned to their home countries through “self-deportation,” DHS said. The agency added that participation is increasing in return assistance programs using the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) app.
McLaughlin said undocumented immigrants understand the message that “if they do not leave now, they will be arrested and may never be allowed to return.”
Separately, DHS said it has arrested more than 595,000 undocumented immigrants nationwide since January 2025. The agency said border security has been strengthened and that it is prioritizing deportation of undocumented immigrants with criminal records.
BY HANKIL KANG [kang.hankil@koreadaily.com]
