Following the arrests of eight Tajikistan nationals with ties to ISIS who crossed into the United States via the southern border, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials warn it is an alarmingly frequent occurrence.
"Sometimes there is just no information on individuals," ICE Acting Director Patrick Lechleitner told NewsNation Wednesday. "It is quite common where there is just nothing. You don't have anything. There's no criminal convictions, there's no threat information on these individuals."
Lechleitner said officials might learn of concerning information later on, which is what triggered the arrests of the Tajikistan nationals during a cross-country sting Tuesday in New York, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.
How is it possible 8 suspected terrorists with ISIS ties were able to cross the Southern border and have clean background checks?
— Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) June 12, 2024
“Sometimes there is just no information on individuals. It is quite common where there is just nothing,” ICE Acting Director Patrick Lechleitner says. pic.twitter.com/YTcvMuxa6G
An unnamed source said investigators had been monitoring the individuals for about a month, according to CNN.
Authorities agreed to deport the group under ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations. Prolonging the FBI's surveillance could have potentially led to the materialization of a terroristic plot, the source explained.
ICE and the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force confirmed "agents arrested several non-citizens" who are "pending removal proceedings," according to the outlet.
"As the FBI and DHS have recently described in public and partner bulletins, the US has been in a heightened threat environment."
