ICE arrests and deportations plunged in 2021 as the agency focused on detaining immigrants convicted of serious crimes

Arrests and deportations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) plummeted in fiscal year 2021 as the agency entered a "new era" under the Biden administration, which directed officers to focus on detaining immigrants with serious criminal convictions, government figures released Friday show.

ICE deportation officers arrested 74,082 immigrants in fiscal year 2021, which ended in October, a 28% drop from 2020, when arrests also decreased sharply because of the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

The agency carried out 59,011 deportations in fiscal year 2021, an all-time low, according to historical ICE data. The previous low came in fiscal year 2004, when ICE recorded 175,106 deportations.