U.S. Homeland Safety Secretary Kristi Noem, flanked by Director of Subject Operations (DFO) for Customs and Border Safety’s CBP’s New York Subject Workplace (NYFO), Frank Russo, and Particular Agent in Cost at Homeland Safety Investigations (HSI), Ricky Patel, attends a press convention to debate ongoing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, as a part of U.S. President Donald’s Trump’s immigration coverage, at One World Commerce Middle in New York Metropolis, January 8, 2026.
REUTERS/David ‘Dee’ Delgado
A day after considered one of her ICE brokers shot a girl useless in Minneapolis, U.S. Homeland Safety Secretary Kristi Noem got here to Decrease Manhattan on Thursday and took rhetorical intention at elected officers within the Large Apple who condemned her and the company for the incident that shocked the nation.
Throughout her press convention at One World Commerce Middle, Noem attacked New York’s sanctuary metropolis insurance policies, and others prefer it across the nation, which give protections for undocumented people whom she has repeatedly known as “illegal aliens.”
The secretary tried to tie the town’s sanctuary metropolis insurance policies on to a July 19, 2025, incident through which two suspects, each of whom had entered the nation illegally, tried to rob an off-duty Customs and Border Safety (CPB) officer in a metropolis park, in the end capturing him within the face and wrist.
“This officer’s life was forever altered by this heinous crime. His attackers never should have been in the country,” Noem mentioned. “But they have been protected and were protected up until that point by sanctuary city policies.”
Within the wake of the capturing, the investigation that adopted tied the suspects to the Trinitarios, a trans-national legal group. Federal regulation enforcement officers labored with the NYPD and the Manhattan District Lawyer’s workplace, subsequently launching “Operation Salvo” in an effort to spherical up reputed gang members, arresting a minimum of 54 people to this point, in response to Noem.
The suspects have been accused of weapons trafficking, human smuggling, narcotics distribution and armed robberies, officers on the Jan. 8 press convention mentioned.
Protestors protest at Foley Sq. over the ICE capturing in Minneapolis, Minnesota that left Renee Wilson Good useless on Wednesday, Jan. 8. Picture by Lloyd Mitchell
Noem additionally addressed the occasions in Minneapolis on Jan. 7 throughout the press convention in Decrease Manhattan. She provided no apologies for the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old girl who was fatally shot by an ICE agent amid a protest within the Minnesota metropolis.
The incident, caught on digital camera, concerned Good making an attempt to drive away as one ICE agent tried to open the door. As she drove ahead and away from that particular person, one other masked ICE agent close by opened hearth — pulling the set off thrice and fatally capturing Good within the face.
However Noem once more claimed on Thursday morning the agent acted in self-defense, claiming Good — whom she alleged, with out proof, had dedicated an “act of domestic terrorism” — had tried to “run them over” together with her automotive. The secretary’s narrative appears to contradict the occasions within the video of the incident that went viral.
“This law enforcement officer followed his training in defense of his life and those around him,” she mentioned, including that “any loss of life is a tragedy.”
Noem mentioned the incident is below investigation, with the FBI apparently taking up the case. A number of retailers have reported that Minnesota investigators have been denied entry to proof for their very own assessment.
ICE raids have elevated all through the nation since President Donald Trump took workplace final yr. Lots of them have occurred at 26 Federal Plaza, the positioning of immigration courtroom in Decrease Manhattan, the place masked ICE brokers have apprehended immigrants obeying courtroom orders to attend hearings about their immigration standing. On quite a few events, ICE brokers have arrested elected officers and harassed and assaulted journalists in search of to doc the operations.
Advocates and metropolis elected officers rejected Noem’s claims and reaffirmed they might proceed to guard immigrants throughout the town.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani mentioned he has no plans to budge on lifting NYC’s sanctuary protections, per a press release he made following Wednesday’s horrific capturing within the Midwest.
“We know that when ICE agents attack immigrants, they attack every single one of us across this country,” the mayor mentioned. “And this is a city that stands up for immigrants across the five boroughs, and I have made it clear to everyone within my city government, and that extends to NYPD, that we are going to uphold our sanctuary city policies.”
NYS Meeting Member Tony Simone on Thursday pushed for laws geared toward curbing unlawful masked operations by ICE.
Donna Lieberman, government director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, had a direct message for Noem and ICE about sanctuary cities.
“Contrary to your spin, the facts are that New York’s longstanding, bipartisan sanctuary laws have made our city safer, fueled our economy, strengthened our communities, and made it easier for people to access vital services that support public safety,” she mentioned. It’s additionally that proven fact that bail reform has superior justice for 1000’s of New Yorkers with out elevating crime ranges, that are at historic lows. It’s ICE that’s every day undermining public security.”
“ICE has a total disregard for public safety, and human life,” Public Advocate Jumanne Williams added.
