Department of Homeland Security agents raided construction sites in The Villages on Tuesday as part of a nationwide sweep.
Special agents from Tampa participated in the roundup of about two dozen illegal aliens from Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. It was noted that some of those arrested had been previously deported.
There are similar raids taking place across the country in the wake of President Trump’s proclamation that established “Project Homecoming.”
Trump said the effort is aimed at the removal of illegal aliens who have refused to leave voluntarily.
“The continued presence of illegal aliens in our Nation forces American taxpayers to bear a tremendous fiscal burden to support them, including through costs related to healthcare, food stamps, public housing, emergency medical services, education, and shelter, as well as the costs of crimes committed by illegal aliens. In Fiscal Year 2023 alone, these costs were estimated to exceed $150 billion in taxpayer dollars,” Trump said in the proclamation.
Earlier this year, a suspected MS-13 gang member, who was running a drywall business in The Villages, was arrested.