Florida officials tout 287(g) enforcement, report thousands of arrests and hundreds of located children

State and federal officials at a Florida press event described recent joint immigration-enforcement operations and gave counts for arrests and identified children.

Governor Ron DeSantis announced the results of a recent multiagency operation, Sandhill Sentinel 9.0, saying it "has resulted in 250 arrests," and he said the state has supported a range of operations targeting repeat immigration violators and people with criminal histories. Anthony Coker, executive director of the state's immigration-enforcement office, said, "Florida continues to lead the nation in 287G arrests," and said designated immigration officers rose from about 5,000 in January 2025 to close to 8,000.

Operational detail and named arrestees

Dave Kerner, who oversees Florida Highway Patrol operations, described the logistics of a 2½–3 day enforcement operation and said state troopers were responsible for 10,400 of the 287(g) arrests credited to the state overall; he named several arrestees, including "Marco Tulio Porras, a 32-year-old citizen of Mexico" presented for prosecution for re-entry after removal and others with convictions for re-entry and domestic-violence offenses. Kerner said the most recent operation encountered 250 people who "did not belong in this country," characterizing many as repeat re-entrants.

Children located and differing counts

Officials described "Operation Locate," an FDLE initiative that focuses on finding unaccompanied migrant children who entered during the border surge. One speaker said the operation had "identified more than 400 children," and later FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass said, "I think it was 408 right now." The transcript records both figures; the officials did not reconcile them on the record during the event.

Other operations and outcomes

DeSantis and agency leaders also discussed "Operation Criminal Return," a 10-day FDLE–DHS operation that officials said yielded about 230 arrests of sex offenders, "career offenders" and other serious offenders. Mark Glass said the state removed 88 career offenders in one operation and emphasized work to clear sex-offender registries in cooperation with federal partners.

Federal coordination and new ICE leadership

ICE's new field office director, Matt Ellison, said his office will bring additional technology and emphasized that Operation Locate prioritized child safety: "Saving these children's lives is the number one operation here for Operation Locate," he said. Ellison described his prior experience in Baltimore and contrasted Florida's level of state support with jurisdictions he previously served.

Limits and open questions

Reporters asked for a detailed agency-by-agency breakdown of the governor's claim of roughly 25,000 statewide arrests; DeSantis cited FHP's contribution and named several sheriff's offices, but a comprehensive breakdown by agency was not provided on the record. Officials also discussed reimbursements and said the state expects some federal reimbursement for costs; one exchange referenced a $608 million line in state planning during Q&A but did not present a line-by-line accounting on the record.

Where things stand

Officials said the operations have been ongoing and that the state will continue to partner with federal agencies. The event included applause and audience reaction; officials described the operations as continuing and stated they were committed to pursuing additional enforcement and child-location tasks.