Immigration and Customs Enforcement is closing in on a major milestone, with new data showing the agency is on track to surpass its entire 2025 deportation total within roughly six weeks — even as the pace of interior enforcement operations continues to climb across the country.
New ICE data shows the agency has carried out 356,389 deportations so far in fiscal year 2026, which began Oct. 1, averaging roughly 1,260 removals per day. DHS says 2025 saw 442,000 formal deportations and removals, with more than 605,000 total removals overall. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the agency will likely surpass its full 2025 total within the next six weeks.
Targeting Criminal Offenders
Officials emphasize the operations are focused on removing convicted criminals rather than casting an indiscriminate net. Nearly 70% of ICE arrests are of illegal aliens who have already been charged or convicted of a crime in the United States, and at least 10,000 gang members have been taken off the streets since President Trump returned to office. Mullin described the gang members arrested as “vicious criminals who murdered, assaulted, robbed, and terrorized innocent Americans for sport.”
Recent sweeps have turned up individuals with serious violent histories. One recent nationwide operation captured a man in Salt Lake City previously convicted of the attempted murder of a federal law enforcement officer, along with other illegal immigrants convicted of burglary, child sex crimes, and methamphetamine trafficking.
A Shift in Tactics
ICE has also adjusted its enforcement approach, reducing large-scale “at-large” operations in favor of more targeted sweeps following the fallout from earlier mass operations in cities like Minneapolis. Border czar Tom Homan has noted that June saw a record-setting number of immigration arrests, with July on pace to potentially break that record again.
Supporters of the administration’s approach argue the numbers reflect a long-overdue restoration of interior immigration enforcement after years of lax policy, while critics continue to raise concerns about due process and the treatment of individuals swept up without criminal records during the broader enforcement push.
This story is developing.
