8 illegal immigrants, suspected ISIS terrorists arrested in New York, Philly, LA after crossing border

Eight suspected terrorists from Tajikistan were arrested at across the country over the weekend. The arrests took place in New York, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles.  

According to a report from NBC News, the eight illegal immigrant terrorists that were arrested have suspected connections to ISIS and had crossed into the US over the southern border. The suspects had been on the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force radar and were arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, three people familiar with the matter told the outlet on Tuesday.   
 

At least one of the men used the CBP One app in order to get into the US in spring 2023. Another crossed at the same time. A senior official in the government told NBC News that the FBI was monitoring the group for several months to keep tabs on their activities. The CBP One app is used by illegal immigrants to obtain permission from the federal government to travel to the US and obtain an appointment to apply for asylum at the border and obtain a court date. No official papers or identification is needed to set up a profile on the CBP One app.  

“Over the last few days, ICE agents arrested several non-citizens pursuant to immigration authorities," the Department of Homeland Security as well as the FBI said in a joint statement. "The actions were carried out in close coordination with the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces. The individuals arrested are detained in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.”  

The eight suspected terrorists have not been charged with a terror plot, however, the FBI told ICE that they would need to be arrested because of their connection with the terrorist group.   

Two people who spoke to the outlet said that the information that was gathered to make the arrests of the suspected terrorists was also used in order to arrest a Uzbek man in Baltimore that was reportedly connected to ISIS. The arrests are just a few suspected terrorists that have used the southern border for entry into the US. As of late May, 81 suspects on the terror watchlist were known to have attempted to illegally cross the border Sinto the US.