Brooklyn Residents accuse ICE Agents of Falsely Posing as NYPD Officers
Brooklyn immigrant rights advocates and community members rallied in front of the 88th Precinct last Sunday to protest reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents posing as New York Police Department officers in Sunset Park and Red Hook.
Approximately 50 people gathered in front of the Clinton Hill precinct on Oct. 11 to demand a response from Mayor Bill de Blasio and the NYPD concerning alleged reports of ICE officers knocking on the doors of immigrant families. Advocacy groups like Mexicanos Unidos and ICE watch groups in Sunset Park and Red Hook claim ICE Agents have identified themselves as NYPD officers in order to gain access into people’s homes or locate community members. Impersonating a police officer is a felony in New York City.
“[NYPD] says that they can’t do anything about it. They say they don’t have the ability to hold them accountable,” said Aidee Cañongo Rios, an organizer with Mexicanos Unidos.
On Oct. 9, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio sent a letter to ICE condemning reports of ICE agents falsely claiming they were NYPD officers. In the letter, the Mayor’s Office claims it has received reports of ICE agents falsely claiming to be local police but referenced cases that happened earlier this year.
These reports across New York happen against a backdrop of increased fear of detention and deportation across the country. According to a 2018 report from the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, there are over 3 million immigrants in New York City and approximately 504,000 undocumented immigrants.
In June, Black Lives Matter protestors rallied against ICE at the same precinct after a Homeland Security Investigations agent was spotted there. In a video from the June protest, 88th Precinct’s Commanding Officer, Captain Ryon Malcolm, said that some ICE agents were assisting the NYPD as “volunteers to provide different services throughout the city.”
“Frequently we try to make sure that New Yorkers who are impacted by ICE raids receive free immigration legal services and do public education to ensure that New Yorkers know their rights, you do not have to open the door for ICE,” said Nick Gulotta, the Director of Outreach & Organizing at the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs.
“We’re tired of being oppressed. We’re tired of government backing systems that continue to oppress us,” Cañongo Rios said.
