At least 21,301 Nicaraguans were arrested by “La Migra” in the United States in fiscal year 2023 (October 2022-September 2023), according to figures released this Sunday by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Detention and Removal Operations (ERO) officials. The service, in a new interactive statistic released to the public on its website.
Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Chicago were the cities where the most Nicaraguans were arrested in the United States. Arrests include people with criminal convictions in the United States, charges pending or convictions or charges pending, but who have violated US immigration laws, including visa overstay and waiver program violators. Visa requirements, according to ICE clarifications on its site.
Also includes repeat violators of US law on re-entry after deportation, immigration fugitives with an enforceable final order of removal, and international fugitives wanted for crimes committed abroad.
In the same Angels, 3,334 Nicaraguans were apprehended for immigration violations, with December (2022), January, March, and April being the months with the most serious and highest captures. Additionally, 23 had pending criminal charges and 17 had been convicted. All this for a total of 3,374.
It follows New Orleans with 2,679 compatriots and Chicago with 2,044. Risk of getting caught is in fourth place Dallas (1,854); after that Denver (1,491).
Following the order by degree of risk of arrest, Miami follows (970); then St. Paul (in Minnesota) with 397; Seattle (929) is followed by: Newark (in the state of New Jersey) also with 822; Atlanta follows with 766.
More cities
Other cities at risk of arrest are Houston (697) and San Antonio (679). San Francisco (616), New York City (577), Detroit (531), and Boston (476) also appear.
Cities with the lowest national arrest rates include Salt Lake City, Utah, where 384 were arrested; then Philadelphia (303); Baltimore (258); Washington DC with 252 captures; El Paso (160) and Buffalo (122) followed.
At the low end of arrests, but within cities that reported arrests, were San Diego (105), Harlingen, Texas, with 96 arrests, and Phoenix with 64.
Months with the highest risk of capture
And although a migrant can be caught at any time and city in the United States, the truth is that the statistics of the Immigration and Citizenship Service show that according to statistical evolution the months of greatest risk for Nicaraguan migrants are January, February and March. .
Double arrest
Official US statistics show that Nicaraguans’ holdings have doubled in the past three years.
In fiscal year 2022, for example, immigration authorities apprehended 10,850. In that period, the 10 cities with the most arrests were Los Angeles, New Orleans, Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta, Newark, San Antonio, Miami, New York City, Denver and Houston.
For its part, 2,222 Nicaraguans were arrested in fiscal year 2021, a strong increase over fiscal year 2023. The 10 cities with the most arrests during that period were: Chicago, Seattle, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Newark, San Antonio, New Orleans, Miami and Atlanta.
Number of detainees
Regarding the number of Nicaraguans in detention centers, immigration authorities reported 4,461 citizens in fiscal year 2023, mostly in border cities in the states of Texas and Arizona. However, this number is significantly lower than the 48,069 in FY 2022 and 26,920 in FY 2021.
ICE and its agencies made 130 arrests across the United States, particularly along the borders.
Meanwhile, 2,320 Nicaraguans were deported last year, nearly half of the 5,822 deported over the past three fiscal years.
