More than 1,120 people were detained in immigration sweep in Florida, governor says

Claire Healy and Ana Ceballos, Miami Herald on May 1, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

MIRAMAR, Fla. — A six-day immigration sweep in Florida last week resulted in the arrest of 1,120 people across the state, an operation that state and federal officials described Thursday as the largest of its kind to date and a “warm up” for future immigration enforcement operations.

“We believe this is just the beginning,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference in Miramar. “The best is yet to come.”

The Trump administration has only released the names of 10 individuals, citing a policy of not disclosing private identifying information. But U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said that 63% of those arrested have a criminal record, and the rest all have final orders of removal from the country. The immigrants are primarily from Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Venezuela and El Salvador.

The large-scale operation — first reported by the Miami Herald — is a glimpse of the type of aggressive policing partnerships that could soon start to ramp up in Florida, a state where roughly one-fifth of the population is foreign-born. It is part of a mass deportation campaign led by President Donald Trump, and officials said the operation could soon be replicated across the country.

“I think the governor would agree that this will not be the last one here in the state of Florida, but also a model that we’re able to take to other states,” said Madison D. Sheahan, the deputy director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Dozens of local, state and federal agencies participated — including more than 250 members of local and state law enforcement and the National Guard, officials said. The arrests were done in coordination with local and state agencies that have entered into formal agreements known as 287(g) to help federal authorities with immigration enforcement.

“While this may be the first 287(g) operation of its kind, thanks to the governor, it’s not going to be the last,” Sheahan said. “We will not stop until our American families and everyday Americans are safe in their own communities, because we have zero tolerance for criminal illegal aliens.”

According to a copy of the plans reviewed by the Herald, federal authorities initially targeted 800 “criminal individuals or immigration violators” with final deportation orders in Miami-Dade and Broward counties and the cities of Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, Stuart, Tallahassee and Fort Myers. But the figures shared by federal officials Thursday indicate the number of arrests went beyond the initial goal.

The plans said federal authorities identified individuals through “an organized, methodical, investigative approach,” and that “teams would continuously evaluate” the information to determine what enforcement action would be taken during the sweeps.

“The state leaned in on it, and those numbers are wonderful, and they’re great,” said Larry Keefe, executive director of the State Board of Immigration Enforcement. “But our first op, so to speak, it’s a warm-up, it’s a test run, it was just to kind of see how things played out after all those months of working and planning.”

Arrest details

At the press conference at the ICE office in Miramar, officials answered questions in front of a graph of arrests by nationality and mugshots of four men.

“Alien Smuggler,” read the description of one man. Another read: “South American Theft Gang Member.”

ICE officials also distributed a handout to reporters in which six individuals were said to be represent the “most egregious examples” of the types of criminals arrested last week. Sheahan said one man was arrested on charges of kidnapping and another for murder.

Over 400 of the people arrested were from Guatemala; 280 from Mexico; 153 from Honduras; 48 from Venezuela; 24 from El Salvador; and 178 “from elsewhere,” according to the handout.

Officials said that no minors were arrested, and no children were known to have been transferred to the state Department of Children & Families.

“Those arrested who have final orders of removal or returned to the United States illegally after being deported are subject to immediate removal from the country,” the handout said. “The remaining aliens are in ICE custody awaiting due process before an immigration judge or pending travel arrangements for removal.”

At the news conference, DeSantis said the state will continue to help the Trump administration conduct immigration sweeps across Florida, where the governor said “tens of thousands” of undocumented immigrants are facing final deportation orders.

The governor also reiterated that he wants to set up temporary housing for detained immigrants, but is waiting approval from the Department of Homeland Security.

“That could potentially be a short-term support for the lack of space that the feds may have so we stand ready, willing and able to help in that space,” the governor said.

_____

(This story was produced with financial support from the Esserman Family Foundation in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. The Miami Herald maintains full editorial control of this work.)