Nine immigrants from Africa suspected of being in the country illegally were taken into custody by ICE agents on Tuesday afternoon.

Federal agents detained several people while conducting an operation on Manhattan’s busy Canal Street, searching for undocumented immigrants who may have connections to illegal street vending, according to a senior law enforcement official familiar with the matter.

Empty sidewalks on Canal Street were free of the illegal street vendors hawking fake designer label purses and luxury watches on Wednesday.

Four U.S. citizens were arrested and held for "nearly 24 hours" without any federal charges following a joint Immigration and Customs Enforcement crackdown in New York City's Chinatown neighborhood on Tuesday,

An ICE operation in New York City resulted in the arrests of nine migrants from West Africa who were in the U.S. illegally, Homeland Security said.