WASHINGTON – The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has hit back at Congressman Pat Ryan (D, NY-18) a day after he called out ICE for leasing office space in New Windsor to carry out operations in the Hudson Valley.
The ICE location is at 843 Union Avenue near New York Stewart International Airport.
“Is it really news that when a federal agency hires more personnel that they need more space?” an ICE spokesperson said. “We have an additional 12,000 ICE officers and agents on the ground across the country. That’s a 120 percent increase in our workforce.”
The spokesperson added that ICE will not confirm locations “as our officers are facing a coordinated campaign of violence against them including an 8,000 percent increase in death threats against them and a 1,300 percent increase in assaults against them.”
According to the, the agency currently has an Office of the Principal Legal Advisor at 15 Governor Drive in the Stewart Airport Industrial Park off Route 17K in the Town of Newburgh, which has been in operation for years. The new office would be to provide space for additional staff.
Two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, by ICE in Minneapolis have sparked intense national polarization and widespread protests. The incidents have intensified the debate over immigration crackdowns, with critics citing federal overreach and the Trump administration defending the actions.
Ryan is demanding to know from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem when ICE first leased or occupied the New Windsor office, what are the duration and cost and what is the purpose. Ryan contends the space was leased and has had agents operating out of it without any notification to local or federal elected officials.
Last month, reports surfaced of an ICE detention center planned for the former Pep Boys warehouse in Chester. There were unconfirmed reports of ICE agents at the site on Thursday.
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