By Naveen Athrappully
Authorities have arrested 54 individuals in New York under Operation Salvo, an immigrant enforcement operation that was launched in July 2025 following the shooting of a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement on Jan. 9.
“Those arrested are from violent transnational gangs, including members of the Trinitarios, who, in addition to the July shooting of the off-duty CBP officer, are responsible for: weapons trafficking, human smuggling, narcotics distribution, armed robberies, and previous violent attacks across New York City,” DHS said. The unnamed officer survived the attack.
“Roughly 60 percent of those arrested in Operation Salvo have been removed from the country so far,” said DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.
According to a Feb. 19 statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ), Trinitarios is a criminal enterprise with chapters identified in the Massachusetts cities of Lawrence, Lynn, Boston, and Haverhill.
Members of this group allegedly undertake efforts to dominate communities by establishing control over certain neighborhoods and intimidating rival gangs, often resorting to violence, according to the DOJ.
Among the individuals arrested under Operation Salvo are criminal illegal immigrants, including one who has committed assault with intent to cause serious physical injury, one who has acted in a manner to injure a child under 17 years old, and a third who has a criminal history of being charged with assault in the third degree, DHS said. All three are from the Dominican Republic.
“Operation Salvo is just the beginning of a broader and much more sustained effort to go after not only transnational criminal organizations and networks, but also illegal criminal aliens throughout the country,” Noem said.
“The Trump Administration is using every single tool that we have to protect the American people. We are warning anyone, if you think you can harm an individual, a citizen of the United States, or a law enforcement officer, we will find you and bring you to justice. If you lay a finger on one of our officers, we will catch you. We will prosecute you, and you will feel the full extent of the law.”
On Jan. 5, a group of lawmakers critical of the federal immigration enforcement efforts sent a letter to President Donald Trump, Attorney General Bondi, and Noem, expressing “profound alarm” over their allegedly using thousands of federal law enforcement personnel to deal with immigration issues, such as arresting and deporting illegal immigrants.
The lawmakers, including Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), accused the Trump administration of weakening efforts to ensure public safety through such actions.
“In a world in which we must prioritize the use of limited resources, an agent arresting primarily non-violent immigrants necessarily means one less agent available to catch child predators and drug traffickers,” the letter said.
“This diversion represents a deliberate choice: a stunning abdication of the basic responsibilities of the executive branch to the American people, and a direct threat to the security of communities across the country.”
Meanwhile, in a Jan. 8 post on X, DHS said Operation Salvo sends a message to every single criminal illegal immigrant who thinks they can hide behind sanctuary policies: “You can’t. Leave now before it’s too late.”
In a Jan. 9 statement, DHS said its officers were facing a more than 1,300 percent increase in assaults, a 3,200 percent jump in vehicular attacks, and an 8,000 percent increase in death threats.
“With more than 80,000 officers and agents, our Department is the largest law enforcement agency in the federal government. We recognize the sacrifice you and your families make to protect and serve the American people and our great country,” Noem said.
