(The Center Square) – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested 11 Iranian men with criminal histories, including two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members, all in the country illegally.

They also arrested a U.S. citizen who threatened to kill ICE officers.

The arrests were made after more than 1,500 Iranians illegally entered the U.S. under the Biden administration, with more than 700 released into the U.S., The Center Square exclusively reported.

All 11 Iranian foreign nationals arrested remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings. The majority of arrests occurred on June 22; two occurred on June 23. Arrests took place in seven states: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Minnesota, Mississippi and Texas, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said.

In Locust, Alabama, ICE Atlanta agents arrested Ribvar Karimi, an Iranian Army sniper from 2018 to 2021, DHS said. Despite this, last October, the Biden administration granted his entry on a K-1 visa. At the time of his arrest, he had an Islamic Republic of Iran Army identification card in his possession.

In Tempe, Arizona, ICE agents arrested Mehrzad Asadi Eidivand, who has a final order of removal from a federal immigration judge. His criminal history includes a conviction for threatening a law enforcement officer and illegally possessing a firearm. According to immigration records, he illegally entered the U.S. in San Ysidro, California, in June 2012. In August 2013, an immigration judge granted his voluntary departure request, allowing him to leave the U.S. without being formerly removed by ICE.

He never left and was found living in the Tempe home of Linet Vartaniann, a U.S. citizen. When ICE officers arrived to arrest him, she allegedly threatened to kill them. From inside her home, she “threatened to open fire on ICE officials if they entered her home,” DHS said. She also said she’d come outside to “shoot ICE officers in the head,” according to the charges. ICE officers obtained a search warrant, came back and arrested them both.

In California, ICE San Francisco agents arrested Bahman Alizadeh Asfestani, whose criminal history dates to 1994. It includes two convictions for petty theft and possession of a controlled substance for sale, with a 10-year prison sentence for the drug conviction.

ICE San Diego agents also arrested Arkavan Babk Moirokorli, who was convicted of forging an official seal.

In Colorado Springs, Colorado, ICE officers arrested two men living in the same residence: Mahmoud Shafiei and Mehrdad Mehdipour. Immigration officials first encountered Shafei in Seattle in January 1981. His criminal history includes state and federal convictions for drug crimes and arrests for assault and child abuse. A federal judge ordered his removal in 1987.

Border Patrol agents encountered Mehdipour in June 2023 in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas and processed him for expedited removal. Two years later, he was found in Colorado.

In St. Paul, Minnesota, ICE officers arrested Mehran Makari Saheli, a former IRGC member with admitted connections to Hezbollah, DHS said. The IRGC and Hezbollah are designated foreign terrorist organizations. Saheli, a convicted felon, was sentenced to 15 months in state prison on firearms charges. An immigration judge ordered his removal in 2022.

In Gluckstadt, Mississippi, ICE officers arrested Yousef Mehridehno, a former lawful permanent resident. His residency status was terminated under the first Trump administration in October 2017 after it was determined that he lied on his visa application and committed potential marriage fraud. In February, the Trump administration identified him as a known or suspected terrorist.

In New York, ICE Buffalo officers arrested Mohammad Rafikian, who was convicted of grand larceny, schemes to defraud, criminal impersonation and illegally practicing as an attorney.

In Texas, ICE Houston officers arrested Behzad Sepehrian Bahary Nejad, who has a final order of removal from an immigration judge. At the time of his arrest, he was illegally carrying a loaded 9mm pistol.

He entered the U.S. under the first Trump administration in 2016 on an F-1 student visa. A few months later, in 2017, he was arrested in Houston for assaulting a family member. At the time, his wife obtained a restraining order against him, alleging he was threatening her family in Iran. In July 2018, the University of Texas suspended him and terminated his status. A federal immigration judge ordered his removal in 2019.

ICE Houston officers also arrested Hamid Reza Bayat, who has an August 2005 removal order. His criminal history includes two convictions for drug crimes and one for driving on a suspended license for which he served time in prison.

Removals often depend on a country agreeing to take back their citizens. Because no U.S. diplomatic agreements with Iran exist, the U.S. hasn’t been able to remove Iranians illegally in the country. Under the current Trump administration, agreements have been reached with countries like El Salvador and others to accept criminal foreign nationals who aren’t their citizens who are now being deported from the U.S. The Supreme Court just ruled to allow this deportation process to continue.