ICE Airport Arrests Surge Under Trump Administration

ICE has begun arresting non-citizens with expired visas at domestic airports. Plain-clothes agents have seized travelers at check-in counters and arrival gates in at least 15 airports, including SFO, SJC, Denver International and LAX. The arrests affect spouses of U.S. citizens, asylum seekers and workers awaiting green-card approvals who previously were not prioritized for removal without criminal convictions.

New York Times

The practice builds on a 2023 arrangement in which TSA supplied passenger data to ICE for people with active deportation orders. Under President Donald Trump, the administration has broadened that cooperation to include anyone whose visa has expired.

New York Times

• June 27 – First detentions recorded in the Bay Area.

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• July 1 – 10 arrests logged at SFO and SJC.

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• July 13 – Attempted arrest of Phu Nguyen at Las Vegas halted after onlookers intervened.

CNN

• July 14 – Lorenzo Thompson detained at Nashville International.

CNN

• July 20 – Chantal Morales Rojas seized at Denver International.

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• July 22 – Iryna Gorb forcibly detained at SFO.

CNN

• Arrests documented in at least 15 airports.

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• ICE’s operational goal is around 2,000 arrests per day.

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• DHS says it has deported nearly 1 million undocumented immigrants this fiscal year.

New York Times

• TSA Acting Director Ha Nguyen McNeill told Congress that information sharing between TSA and ICE is “routine and legal.”

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• A DHS spokesperson declined to confirm whether airport arrests have risen, citing “operational security reasons.”

CNN

• For the July 22 detention of Iryna Gorb, DHS said her visa expired in 2011 and she remains in custody.

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• Governor Ned Lamont of Connecticut urged federal officials to “Leave us alone. Leave these people alone,” criticizing the lack of transparency in airport deployments.

TSA ICE Airline Passenger detentions: Federal Immigration Crackdown Spreads to Domestic Checkpoints, Sparking Alarms and Legal Warnings

• Iryna Gorb, a Ukrainian, was seized at SFO after a passenger recorded her pleading, “Please help me.”

CNN

• Chantal Morales Rojas, a 27-year-old Ecuadorian, was detained at Denver while boarding a Southwest flight. ICE cites an overstay; her attorney says she filed a timely adjustment-of-status application and held valid work authorization.

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• Lorenzo Thompson, a Jamaican national, was arrested at Nashville despite entering on a six-month visa on April 17 2021. Southwest Airlines emphasized compliance with “applicable state and federal law.”

CNN

• Phu Nguyen, a 57-year-old Australian, was briefly handcuffed at Las Vegas on July 13; after onlookers intervened, he was released and later re-arrested at LAX.

CNN

• Visa-overstay status: ICE asserts that Rojas overstayed, while her attorney, Laura Lichter, maintains she entered legally on a J-1 visa in early 2023 and has a pending application.

New York Times

• TSA-ICE data sharing: TSA officials describe the practice as routine, whereas immigration advocates call the current level of coordination “unprecedented.”

KQED

• Arrest trend: DHS declined to confirm an uptick, yet rapid-response networks and advocacy groups report a noticeable increase in airport detentions.

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