Trump administration pushes back on CBS claim very few arrested illegal aliens have 'violent criminal records'

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) pushed back against a CBS article claiming that most illegal immigrants arrested under the Trump administration have not committed any "violent criminal offenses."

CBS' Camilo Montoya-Galvez reported on Monday that an internal DHS document showed less than 14% of nearly 400,000 immigrants arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were charged or convicted of violent crimes despite President Donald Trump's vow to go after "the worst of the worst."

DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin insisted on X that this was an inaccurate reading of the numbers, pointing out that the article downplayed several serious crimes by categorizing them as "non-violent."

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Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin pushed back against a CBS report on Monday. (Fox News)

"Drug trafficking, Distribution of child pornography, burglary, fraud, DUI, embezzlement, solicitation of a minor, human smuggling are all categorized as 'non violent crimes.' Like we said, ~70% of those illegal aliens arrested under @POTUS Trump and @Sec_Noem have pending criminal charges or prior convictions," McLaughlin wrote.

In another post, she wrote, "By @cbs’s standard, Edward Hernandez, who @ICEgov arrested last week in Virginia is a 'non criminal' because he hasn’t been convicted in the United States. Never mind that he is an MS-13 member & confessed to murdering 5 people in El Salvador through shooting, torturing, stabbing, and dismemberment (including one victim who was alive.)"

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The official ICE X account also responded to the CBS report in a post criticizing the categorization of "non-violent" criminals.

The CBS article acknowledged approximately 60% of illegal immigrants arrested by ICE had criminal charges or convictions. (AP Photo)

"Here’s a more accurate headline, CBS. Nearly 70% of criminal aliens detained by ICE have pending charges or prior convictions. So-called 'non-violent' offenders include individuals charged with drug trafficking, distribution of child pornography, burglary, fraud, DUI, embezzlement, solicitation of a minor, human smuggling, and more. Labeling these offenses as 'non-violent' does not mean they aren’t threats to public safety," the post read.

Homeland Security's official X account also listed examples of illegal immigrants arrested by ICE who would qualify as "non-violent" under the CBS report because they were charged and convicted of violent crimes outside the United States.

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Despite the headline claiming "less than 14%" of arrested illegal immigrants have "violent criminal records," the article itself acknowledged that "nearly 60% of ICE arrestees over the past year had criminal charges or convictions" including for DUI, kidnapping and arson. The other 40%, according to the document, were "accused of civil immigration offenses."

Homeland Security shared examples of arrested illegal immigrants who would not qualify as ‘violent’ criminals under the CBS report. (DHS/Jim Watson - Pool/Getty Images)

Fox News Digital reached out to DHS and CBS for comment.

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The numbers in the CBS document represented 393,000 arrests made between Jan. 21, 2025 and Jan. 31 of this year.