Tom Homan, President Donald Trump's point man for mass deportations and border security, warned Monday that those in the country illegally should self-deport or face arrest from Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.
"You cannot hide from ICE," Homan said during a White House press briefing that aired live on Newsmax and the Newsmax2 free online streaming platform. "We are actively looking for you. Federal law requires every alien in the United States who has been present in the United States for more than 30 days needs to register. For those 14 years or older, you need to be fingerprinted with the Department of Homeland Security. Federal law requires every alien in the United States to tell DHS in writing if you have a change of address within 10 days of changing that address. Failing to register with DHS and failure to tell DHS about your new address are criminal offenses and will be treated as such.
"Starting today, make no mistake, if you are in the country illegally and you failed to do what the law requires, we will prosecute you, you will go to jail, and we will deport you."
Homan targeted his message at individuals who have received a final order of removal from an immigration judge and that the Trump administration "is committed to enforcing our immigration laws, especially for those aliens who have received final orders of deportation."
He added, "There are currently around 1.4 million illegal aliens who have been ordered removed but remain here in violation of the law. We will aggressively prosecute consistent with long-standing law those aliens for failing or refusing to depart or who takes other related actions aimed at hindering their removal. … If you fail to leave the United States after receiving a removal order, we can and will issue monetary fines up to $998 a day. Evading your arrest, knowing you have a final order of removal, is a criminal offense. We will prosecute, then we will deport you.
"Get your affairs in order. If you are in the country illegally, work with ICE, go to the CBP One Home app and leave on your own. Because if we have to find you, deport you, and prosecute you, you will have a bar placed on you and you won't come back to this country. You won't be able to come back on a business visa, tourist visa. If you have a U.S. citizen child, [he or she] can't petition for you. If you are in this country illegally, get your affairs in order and work with us and get yourself removed from this country. That is what the law requires, and we're going to enforce that law."
In February, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced an advertising campaign that warned criminal migrants seeking to enter the country and break laws "will be hunted down and deported." In one ad, Noem delivered a similar message to Homan's: Those in the country illegally can self-deport and have a chance to come back in legally, "but if you have to wait until we deport you, you will never return."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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