(WASHINGTON) -- Many of the noncitizens who were deported pursuant to the Alien Enemies Act on Saturday did not have criminal records, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official said in a sworn filing overnight.
In a sworn declaration, ICE Acting Field Office Director of Enforcement and Removal Operations Robert Cerna argued that "the lack of specific information about each individual actually highlights the risk they pose" and "demonstrates that they are terrorists with regard to whom we lack a complete profile."
The declaration was included in the Trump administration's recent motion to vacate Judge James Boasberg's temporary restraining order blocking deportations pursuant to the AEA.
"While it is true that many of the [Tren de Aragua gang] members removed under the AEA do not have criminal records in the United States, that is because they have only been in the United States for a short period of time. The lack of a criminal record does not indicate they pose a limited threat," Cerna said.
The admission that many of the men lacked criminal records – and were deported on the assumption that they might be terrorists – comes as top Trump administration officials insist that the men were violent criminals, with President Donald Trump labeling them "monsters."
Cerna wrote that some of the men have been convicted or arrested for crimes including murder, assault, harassment, and drug offenses, writing that ICE personnel "carefully vetted each individual alien to ensure they were in fact members of TdA."
To determine whether a noncitizen was a "member of TdA," he said law enforcement allegedly used victim testimony, financial transactions, computer checks, and other "investigative techniques."
"ICE did not simply rely on social media posts, photographs of the alien displaying gang-related hand gestures, or tattoos alone," Cerna said.
According to Cerna, a review of ICE databases suggested that "numerous individuals removed" had been arrested or convicted outside of the U.S. At least five of the men were subject to INTERPOL notices for alleged crimes including rape, kidnapping, child, abduction, corruption, and possession of illegal firearms.
Cerna also noted that some of the men were arrested or encountered during federal law enforcement raids while they were in the U.S., though the declaration did not note if the men were ever charged or convicted for any crimes.
The identities and status of the deported men have not been disclosed by the Trump administration, making it unknown what portion of the over 200 noncitizens had criminal records in the U.S. or abroad.
Department of Justice lawyers said the judge's temporary restraining orders "are an affront to the President's broad constitutional and statutory authority to protect the United States from dangerous aliens who pose grave threats to the American people.
Judge Boasberg on Tuesday ordered the government to file under seal to the court by Wednesday at noon details regarding two aircraft that the administration did not return to the U.S. following the judge's verbal order last week.
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