Friday’s arrest follows the ICE’s controversial arrests Wednesday of migrants who had reportedly shown up at San Antonio Immigration Court for scheduled court dates. Credit: Michael Karlis

On Friday, just two days after plainclothes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers drew national attention by conducting arrests outside a downtown immigration court, the agency undertook another San Antonio enforcement action.

In the most recent sweep, ICE agents arrested several people near the University of Texas at San Antonio campus, News 4 SA reports. Officials with the agency confirmed the arrests to the TV station but didn’t specify how many migrants it picked up.

The Express-News reports that those arrested were working construction on the university campus.

ICE’s controversial operation on Wednesday snowballed into national news due to its shocking imagery. That bust occurred outside the San Antonio Immigration Court, where some of those detained had reportedly shown up for scheduled court dates about their immigration status.

National news outlets including CBS and NBC covered the scene in San Antonio. Coverage of Wednesday’s action rivaled the national coverage aired in April of a migrant in San Antonio who spent eight hours in a tree to evade arrest, as reported by New York Times, CNN and others.

“It’s disgusting,” progressive political commentator Sam Seder said on his daily talk show The Majority Report of Wednesday’s operation. “This is going on around the country. You got these children who are zip-tied. You’ve got ICE agents who are arresting people at their hearings.”

A small protest formed downtown in response to the sweep. National influencers focused on social justice issues also joined in the condemnation of the recent arrests.

“She was screaming ‘my kids are in school, my kids are in school’ and ICE took her anyway. That’s the America we’re living in,” Eliza Orlins, a career public defense attorney in Manhattan, said in an Instagram post.

During Wednesday’s action, one 21-year-old man was arrested after his court appearance, even though the judge had scheduled a follow up court date for November, KSAT reports. Witnesses also told the station that officers didn’t identify themselves before the arrest.

This week’s busts are part of a ramping up of ICE operations nationwide as the Trump administration sets a new quota of 3,000 ICE arrests per day, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told Fox News Wednesday. That number exceeds the previous daily average of 1,000 per day from earlier this year.

San Antonio ICE already appeared to have ramped up operations prior to this week’s busts. On May 20, the agency’s Alamo City operation announced that it had arrested 275 individuals in a joint operation, according to its website.

“Criminal aliens have taken advantage of our immigration laws for long enough. We will continue to prioritize public safety,” ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations San Antonio acting Field Office Director Sylvester M. Ortega said. “Our mission to protect the American people is stronger than ever thanks to the hard work and dedication of ICE personnel out every day locating, arresting and removing criminal aliens illegally present in our country.”

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This article appears in May 29 – Jun 11, 2025.

Stephanie Koithan is the Digital Content Editor of the San Antonio Current. In her role, she writes about politics, music, art, culture and food. Send her a tip at skoithan@sacurrent.com.