The Oklahoma Highway Patrol, working with ICE agents, arrested 120 illegal immigrants during an operation at a port of entry near the Texas border.
Named Operation Guardian, the plan was a broad deportation initiative spearheaded by Governor Kevin Stitt alongside Oklahoma’s Department of Public Safety.
The operation occurred on Interstate 40, where authorities identified numerous offenders driving 80,000-pound 18-wheelers without verifiable licenses.
During the operation, troopers encountered more than 500 people and turned 120 over to ICE, according to officials.
Gov. Kevin Stitt, in coordination with Oklahoma’s Department of Public Safety, arrested 120 illegal immigrants. (Deirdre Heavey/Fox News Digital)
According to Stitt, the initiative aims to transfer undocumented offenders from state and local detention directly into federal deportation processes, addressing what he refers to as prolonged federal inaction.
“Under former President Biden, lenient border policies turned our nation into a refuge for criminal illegal migrants — but with Operation Guardian, that stops in Oklahoma,” Stitt remarked. “These dangerous illegal aliens shouldn’t be freely roaming our streets, and soon, they won’t be. Oklahoma upholds law and order.”
ICE has not yet released the name of the suspect, who was pronounced dead at the hospital. (Getty Images)
The strategy enhances ICE collaborations, allowing certain state and local officials to detain and hand over offenders. It also permits parole boards to send noncitizen prisoners straight into federal custody if deportation orders have been issued.
It will implement a Rapid REPAT program as well, allowing eligible inmates to skip appeals and move directly into deportation.
Tipton emphasized the operation was about more than immigration policy — it was about protecting families on Oklahoma’s roads and in its communities.
“This initiative positions Oklahoma at the forefront of the national effort to curb illegal aliens who have perpetrated crimes within our communities,” Tipton stated. “Operation Guardian directly addresses the threat these criminals impose on our residents.”
