David Venturella is set to become the next acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed to The Epoch Times on Tuesday.
During his tenure, the agency expanded its law enforcement operations, which drew widespread scrutiny. In January, federal immigration agents fatally shot two U.S. citizens during operations in Minneapolis. In February, Lyons announced that two officers had been suspended pending possible charges.
Venturella steps into the role as Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin says ICE will continue pursuing all illegal immigrants but will work to keep operations out of the headlines.
“We’re purposely trying to be a little bit more quiet. … I wanted to get DHS out of the headlines so our ICE agents, our CBP agents … could go do their job without being harassed by the media,” he told Newsmax.
Venturella's career in immigration enforcement spans nearly four decades.
He entered federal law enforcement in 1986 in Chicago, joining the former Immigration and Naturalization Service as a deportation officer. He eventually became assistant district director and deputy district director, before later serving as the assistant director and acting director of ICE's Office of Detention and Removal Operations.
He also directed the Secure Communities program, a biometric data-sharing initiative launched in 2008 to identify immigration enforcement targets among individuals booked into local jails.
Venturella has also held senior positions at private homeland security firms and later at GEO Group. He holds a bachelor's degree from Bradley University and completed executive programs at Harvard University and MIT.
He has long argued that enforcement of federal immigration laws and respect for immigrants are not in conflict.
During testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in April 2005, Venturella—noting he himself is the son of an immigrant—said he understands why people risk their lives to reach the United States. But he added, "Without strict and fair enforcement of our immigration statues, our country will remain vulnerable to the threats that arise from individuals who willingly exploit gaps in our immigration system."