Federal immigration agents showed up at multiple U.S. airports on Monday after the Trump administration announced it would deploy ICE agents to ease security lines as the partial government shutdown continues.
The closure, which began on February 14, has resulted in long lines at airport gate security checkpoints normally manned by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents. Since the shutdown, hundreds of thousands of employees under the Department of Homeland Security, including the TSA, have been working without pay because Congress failed to pass new funding.
Democrats are calling for changes to federal immigration services after reports of abuse by staff, including the killing of two Americans earlier this year.
In recent days, tourists have been photographing queues with wait times estimated to be several hours. President Trump’s border czar Tom Homan told CNN that starting Monday, ICE officers will be deployed to airports with the longest wait times. Homan said the details of the plan are still being discussed.
Critics argue that having ICE officers at airports will increase tensions with travelers.
Federal agents arrested at least one person at San Francisco International Airport Sunday night, witnesses said. A video posted on TikTok shows unidentified plainclothes personnel crossing security lines at a terminal gate and detaining people, including children. A video posted on Reddit shows agents restraining a person from a different angle. TechCrunch has contacted the poster.
An ICE spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the arrest.
According to an Associated Press reporter, ICE agents were also seen at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The Guardian reports that ICE has been spotted at Newark, New Orleans, and John F. Kennedy airports in New York. CNN reports that airports where ICE is deployed include Chicago, Cleveland, Houston, Phoenix and San Juan.
ICE is known to use a variety of tools to identify and target individuals, including facial recognition apps and phone unlocking tools to break into people’s devices. ICE agents also use location data from people’s phone apps and games to monitor their whereabouts.
Have you ever traveled through a US airport and interacted with ICE on behalf of (or with) TSA? Contact us via zackwhittaker.1337 on Signal. You can also email us at zack.whittaker@techcrunch.com.
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