Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton.

(CNSNews.com) - The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, a division of the Homeland Security Department, says a three-day sweep in the Washington, D.C., suburbs resulted in the arrest of 163 foreign nationals, many of whom were convicted criminal aliens.

Those arrested come from more than 32 different nations, including countries in Latin America, the Middle East, Asia, the Caribbean and Africa, ICE announced on Tuesday. 

The crackdown – officially known as an “enforcement and removal operation” -- included criminals who were in the country both legally and illegally.

Of those arrested, 130 were criminal aliens, eight were fugitives, three had already been deported and re-entered illegally and 22 were non-criminals who had been summoned to appear in immigration court.  The 130 criminal aliens had prior convictions for a number of offenses, including rape, assault, burglary, and narcotics possession. The majority – 134 of the 163 people arrested -- were men.

Due to their “serious” criminal records and prior contact with immigration enforcement officials, some of the individuals detained in the recent sweep will face additional federal prosecution for “re-entering the country illegally after a formal deportation,” ICE said.

The foreign nationals who do not face additional criminal charges will be “processed administratively” for removal from the United States. Some will appear in immigration court.  

“We are a nation with a proud history of immigration,” ICE Director John Morton said following this week’s crackdown. “If you come here lawfully, work hard, and play by the rules, the United States welcomes you with open arms. For those who come here unlawfully and commit crimes at the expense of their neighbors and their communities, we will not rest until we find you and send you home."

ICE notes that for two years in a row, it has removed more aliens than were removed in fiscal year 2008. In fiscal year 2010, half of those removed (more than 195,000) were convicted criminals, it said.

"Once again through our working relationship with ICE, Virginia has had the opportunity to continue to safeguard its communities from convicted criminals," said Virginia’s Republican Governor Bob McDonnell. "Despite the legal permanent resident status of some of these individuals, their crimes clearly violated the conditions allowing them to legitimately remain in this country. Removing them from our neighborhoods prevents them from victimizing our Virginia residents and businesses again.”

Of the 163 arrests, 141 were made in suburban Northern Virginia: Alexandria (13); Arlington County (11); Fairfax County (60); Prince William County (37); and Loudoun County (20).  One person was arrested in the city of Herndon, Va., and one in Washington, D.C. The rest took place in other Virginia locations.

The agencies participating in the ICE-led operation included Virginia State Police, Virginia Department of Corrections, local law enforcement, the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force, and U.S. Secret Service in addition to ICE teams from Atlanta, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Fairfax County and Richmond, Va.