By Naveen Athrappully
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have arrested multiple “worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens” in Memphis, Tennessee, as part of President Donald Trump’s push to crack down on violent crime and make the city safe, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in an Oct. 20 statement.
Arrested individuals include alleged pedophiles, gang members, drug traffickers, domestic abusers, and rapists, according to the agency.
Among the arrested are a Honduran national who allegedly committed “the sex offense of fondling a child,” an alleged Mexican Sureno 13 gang member with convictions of assault and possession of narcotic equipment, and a Guatemalan national who allegedly committed domestic violence.
“Memphis has suffered from historic levels of violent crime including a murder rate that is four times higher than Mexico City. No American should be afraid to walk down the streets in their own neighborhoods,” DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said.
“In Memphis, DHS law enforcement is working hand in glove with Attorney General [Pam] Bondi to enhance public safety, fight crime, and provide much-needed support to our law enforcement partners at the local, state, and federal level. The Trump administration WILL make America safe again.”
Trump issued a presidential memorandum on Sept. 15 to establish a Memphis Safe Task Force and make National Guard personnel available to support public safety and law enforcement operations in Memphis.
“The city of Memphis, Tennessee, is suffering from tremendous levels of violent crime that have overwhelmed its local government’s ability to respond effectively,” the memorandum states.
The National Guard started patrolling in Memphis on Oct. 10.
Memphis has the highest violent crime rate among U.S. cities at 2,501 per 100,000 residents in 2024, much higher than second-ranked Detroit at 1,781 violent crimes. Memphis’ violent crime rate last year was around six times higher than the national average.
Trump’s deployment of the National Guard in Tennessee has faced opposition. On Oct. 17, a group of state officials filed a lawsuit against Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and other officials.
Tennessee’s Constitution limits the governor’s ability to use the state’s National Guard, stating that such troops shall only be called into service in the case of rebellion or invasion, the lawsuit said.
The state’s General Assembly must declare that, by law, such deployment is necessary for public safety, it said, adding that state statutes forbid the governor from unilaterally using the military for civilian law enforcement.
“Defendants have trampled on Tennessee law by unilaterally deploying Tennessee National Guard members in Memphis as a domestic police force. On October 10, 2025, military police in fatigues descended upon Memphis, in a deployment of the Tennessee National Guard authorized by Governor Bill Lee,” state officials said in the complaint.
“Governor Lee acted at the request of President Donald Trump, but not at the request of any Memphis or Shelby County officials. He also had no approval or authorization from the Tennessee General Assembly. The deployment is patently unlawful.”
The lawsuit asked the court to issue a temporary injunction requiring the defendants to cease the deployment of National Guard personnel in Memphis for civilian law enforcement purposes.
In a Sept. 13 post on X, Memphis Mayor Paul Young said that the governor and the president have the authority to deploy the National Guard to his city.
He shared a clip from an MSNBC interview in which the host asked what the National Guard could do for his city.
“We do have issues with blight in our community, and if there is a way for them to help support our team on that front, we have a deficit of about 300 to 500 officers that we need,” Young said.
In his X post, Young added that he never asked for such a deployment and does not believe this is the path to bring down crime in Memphis.
“However, the decision has been made. As your Mayor, my commitment is to work strategically to ensure this happens in a way that truly benefits and strengthens our community,” he said in a follow-up post.
Trump and FBI Director Kash Patel said during an Oct. 15 press conference that the administration’s crime crackdown has resulted in more than 28,000 violent criminals being arrested over the past seven months.
“We’re going to go into other cities that we’re not talking about, purposely,” Trump said. “We’re going to have a surge of strong, good people, patriots, and they’re going to go in, they’re going to straighten it all out.”
