HARTFORD, CT – ICE officers arrested 65 illegal immigrants across Connecticut during a four-day enforcement sweep targeting violent offenders, sex criminals, gang members, and foreign fugitives — with many of the arrests made in cities like Danbury, Stamford, and Norwalk.
The multi-agency crackdown, dubbed Operation Broken Trust, ran from August 12 through August 15 and was led by ICE Boston’s Hartford field office in collaboration with the FBI, DEA, U.S. Marshals, and ATF. Nearly half of the individuals taken into custody had been convicted of or charged with serious crimes, including sexual assault, kidnapping, weapons violations, and child exploitation.
ICE officials emphasized that many of those arrested were released previously by local jurisdictions due to Connecticut’s sanctuary policies under the state’s Trust Act, which limits cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities.
Among the most egregious offenders taken off the streets was Efren Mauricio Guallpa-Shurshanay, a 43-year-old Ecuadorian national convicted of sexual assault in 2008. He was located and arrested in Danbury. Also arrested in the same city was Ruben Antonio Fuentes, a 35-year-old from El Salvador with convictions for cocaine distribution, weapon possession, cruelty toward a child, and obscene communications.
In Norwalk, ICE apprehended Jaime Timoteo Gonzalez-Moran, a 37-year-old Guatemalan with a record including sexual assault and three DUI convictions. He was one of several suspects identified with a violent criminal background.
ICE officials say several of the individuals arrested had Interpol red notices or outstanding arrest warrants from their home countries, further underscoring the transnational element of the operation.
The operation also uncovered multiple offenders linked to weapons charges, gang affiliation, and domestic violence. In Stamford, ICE detained Henry and Marlon Morales-Cante, two Guatemalan nationals aged 21 and 19 respectively, both charged with weapon possession and reckless endangerment.
All 65 arrested are currently in ICE custody pending removal proceedings. The agency says the operation was necessary due to Connecticut’s refusal to honor immigration detainers, forcing agents to execute at-large arrests in public settings.