U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has started a new initiative in partnership with state and local law enforcement to check on the welfare of 450,000 unaccompanied minors who crossed the border during the Biden administration, according to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) news release.
The UAC Safety Verification Initiative aims to conduct welfare checks “to protect vulnerable children from sexual abuse and exploitation through collaboration with… law enforcement partners,” the DHS stated. The agency further said, “The Biden administration’s open border policies empowered human and sex traffickers.” It added, “The Trump administration is taking a sledgehammer to human trafficking rings and ensuring these children who were smuggled across the border are not being abused.”
Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary at DHS, said, “Secretary Noem is leading efforts to rescue and stop the exploitation of the 450,000 unaccompanied children the Biden administration lost or placed with unvetted sponsors.” She continued, “Many of the children who came across the border unaccompanied were allowed to be placed with sponsors who were smugglers and sex traffickers.”
McLaughlin also reported that “the Trump administration has located more than 24,400 of these children in-person, in the United States, through visits and door knocks.” She explained that efforts have increased: “We’ve jumpstarted our efforts to rescue children who were victims of sex and labor trafficking by working with our state and local law enforcement partners to locate these children. President Trump and Secretary Noem are laser-focused on protecting children and will continue to work with federal, state, and local law enforcement to reunite children with their families.”
The initiative began this week in Florida. According to DHS, arrests have been made in 12 states — Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas — involving sponsors of unaccompanied minors. Charges against sponsors include assault offenses such as rape and domestic violence as well as attempted murder, drug trafficking, and human trafficking.
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) previously raised concerns about thousands of unaccompanied minors being placed in homes without proper vetting under the Biden administration. He commented: “My oversight continues to expose disturbing evidence that the Biden-Harris administration turned a blind eye to tens of thousands of kids who needed proper supervision and care.” Grassley added: “It’s appalling to prioritize speed and optics over the safety and wellbeing of children.” He also stated: “I appreciate the Trump administration’s efforts to undo the damage caused by the last administration’s failed border policies, and I’ll continue my oversight of the issue to ensure abuse like this never happens again.”
Grassley’s office reported that 11,488 migrant children were placed with sponsors lacking background checks or fingerprinting. In addition, 79,143 minors went into homes where no home study was performed.
