U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced in a press bulletin that it arrested Melvin Guiakora, 29, a Central African Republic national convicted of sexual solicitation of a minor, on September 27.
According to ICE, Guiakora is listed on its “Worst of the Worst” roster, which highlights high-risk arrests by field offices. The Philadelphia field office—responsible for Delaware, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia—reported that officers took him into custody following his prior Maryland conviction. This action underscores ICE’s focus on removing noncitizens with serious criminal histories, particularly those involving sex offenses against minors.
ICE reported making 149,070 arrests in Fiscal Year 2024 across its two operational branches. This included 113,430 administrative arrests by Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) and 32,608 criminal arrests by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Of ERO’s administrative arrests, 57,690 involved individuals with prior criminal convictions—about 51%—with an average of 3.4 convictions each. These statistics highlight the scale of interior enforcement and the focus on offenders with criminal records.
ICE has increased its focus on “worst of the worst” sex-offender enforcement in 2025 through various field operations and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) communications spotlighting arrests of pedophiles and violent offenders. DHS notices in August and September detailed nationwide campaigns targeting child exploitation and other serious crimes, emphasizing high-harm repeat offenders across field offices.
Founded in 2003 within the Department of Homeland Security, ICE is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with two primary components: ERO, which identifies, arrests, detains, and removes noncitizens subject to immigration law; and HSI, which investigates transnational crime. The agency’s mission focuses on public safety and border security through interior enforcement, removal operations, and criminal investigations conducted by nationwide field offices such as ICE Philadelphia.
