175 Aliens Seized Aboard 2 Flights at L.A. Airport

About 175 suspected illegal aliens from a dozen countries were in custody Tuesday after a sweep of passengers from two flights at Los Angeles International Airport, but federal officials called the airport smuggling cases “just the tip of the iceberg.”

About 125 undocumented aliens were arrested without a struggle by agents at about 10 p.m. Monday as they were boarding an Eastern Airlines flight to Chicago and Newark, N.J. Another 50 were apprehended as they arrived on an Eastern flight from San Diego, said officials of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

“This was one of the largest operations of its type ever conducted at the airport,” said John Belluardo, an agency spokesman who explained that INS agents, acting on tips from airline personnel, staked out the airport for three weeks to gather information on the alien-smuggling activities. “Unfortunately, this is just the tip of the iceberg for this sort of thing.”

Among those arrested were 20 people who are thought to be active in several smuggling networks that have apparently been using flights into and out of Los Angeles to transfer aliens to cities throughout the country, according to Belluardo.

The networks sometimes operate by helping aliens cross the Mexican border and hide in “safe houses” in the San Diego area until airline tickets are purchased for them by smugglers. Other operations originate in Los Angeles, where smugglers set up flights for illegals seeking work in other parts of the country or trying to avoid INS scrutiny, officials said.

Unusual Scrutiny

Passengers on domestic flights are rarely subjected to such checks by INS agents, but INS officials say that similar raids will be conducted periodically.

Those arrested--including aliens from El Salvador, Colombia, Peru, Iran, Venezuela, Mexico, Israel, Chile, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic and Ecuador--were taken to the INS holding facility in Los Angeles for questioning.

Some of the smugglers may face criminal charges, INS officials said, but most of those arrested can either voluntarily return to their home country or request a deportation hearing.

During the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, the INS apprehended 1.78 million illegal aliens nationwide--936,000 in California, Arizona and Nevada--for an increase of 39% over fiscal 1985, officials said.