By Aldgra Fredly
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Dec. 1 urged New York state to honor its detainers for more than 7,000 illegal immigrants currently in custody for various criminal offenses.
ICE alleged that the state has already released about 6,947 criminal illegal immigrants with active detainers since Jan. 20. Among those released were alleged murderers and sexual predators, according to the agency.
The agency said in a statement that the state currently has 7,113 criminal illegal immigrants in its custody who are subject to ICE detainers, including individuals charged with homicide, drug-related crimes, weapons offenses, and sexual predatory offenses.
ICE said that it sent a letter to New York Attorney General Letitia James in September requesting cooperation in honoring detainers for criminal illegal immigrants, but it never heard back.
The detainers require the state to notify federal immigration authorities when illegal immigrants held in state prisons are due for release so they can be safely transferred to ICE custody, according to the agency.
“We are calling on Letitia James to stop this dangerous derangement and commit to honoring the ICE arrest detainers of the more than 7,000 criminal illegal aliens in New York’s custody,” Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said. “It is common sense. Criminal illegal aliens should not be released back onto our streets to terrorize more innocent Americans.”
The Epoch Times reached out to both James’s office and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office for comment, but responses were not immediately returned.
At the weekend, protests were held near an ICE facility in New York City amid ongoing federal immigration enforcement in the city.
Border czar Tom Homan said on Nov. 18 that federal immigration enforcement will increase in New York City to target criminal illegal immigrants.
Dozens of protesters assembled outside of a General Services Administration garage used by ICE on Canal Street in Manhattan on Nov. 29. Some shouted slogans such as “ICE out of New York” and disrupted a convoy of federal vehicles from exiting the garage.
The New York Police Department said on Nov. 29 that its officers responded to the incident and arrested several people who refused to comply with a dispersal order.
In a Nov. 29 post on X, James acknowledged that a “planned federal operation” was taking place in lower Manhattan, noting that local authorities were closely monitoring the situation.
“We’re closely monitoring the situation, and we will keep working with our partners in government to ensure that New Yorkers know their rights, including those arrested today,” she said.
A spokesperson for Hochul has said that the state was working with law enforcement to uphold laws and keep residents safe.
“As Governor Hochul has made clear, federal intervention is not wanted or needed,” the spokesperson said in a Nov. 18 statement to news outlets.
Melanie Sun and Kimberly Hayek contributed to this report.
