Immigration arrests in San Diego and Imperial counties increased drastically in 2025

Federal immigration officers arrested about 4,500 people for civil violations of immigration law between May and October of last year in the San Diego area, a 1500% increase compared to the same period in 2024 where nearly 300 such arrests occurred. By September 2025, arrests surpassed those in the Los Angeles area, where ICE activity surged this past summer.

Note: ICE divides the country into areas of responsibility. The San Diego area of responsibility includes San Diego and Imperial counties whereas the Los Angeles area of responsibility includes Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange, Riverside, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. Data processed to remove likely duplicates and cases where area of arrest was uncertain. The amount shows the rolling average of daily arrests by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations for the 7-day period ending that day. The most recent arrest data ends on October 15, 2025.
Chart: Natasha Uzcátegui-Liggett, CalMattersSource: CalMatters analysis of data from the Deportation Data Project