ICE Agents Face 148 Open Misconduct Allegations Across Three Fiscal Years

Internal records obtained by Newsweek show that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has 148 “open allegations” of agent misconduct and potential criminal wrongdoing spanning fiscal years 2023, 2024 and 2025. The allegations cover sexual assault, bribery, drug smuggling, domestic-violence incidents, drunk driving, misuse of government computers, and ten incidents involving the discharge of service weapons that required mandatory reporting.

Newsweek

The surge in open cases coincides with a dramatic increase in ICE staffing. The Department of Homeland Security reported in January that the agency’s workforce grew from roughly 10,000 to 22,000 officers and agents in less than a year. The expansion followed a recruitment drive that began during the latter part of the Biden administration and continued into the early months of the Trump administration.

Newsweek

• Total open allegations (2023-2025): 148

Newsweek

• Fiscal 2023: 18 open cases

Newsweek

• Fiscal 2024: 69 open cases

Newsweek

• Fiscal 2025: 61 open cases

Newsweek

• Types of allegations include: sexual assault, bribery, drug smuggling, domestic violence, drunk driving, computer misuse, and 10 weapon-discharge incidents.

Newsweek

ICE provided the log of open allegations in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, describing the document as a record of ongoing investigations rather than finalized findings. John Sandweg, who served as acting ICE director under President Barack Obama, said the number of open investigations raises questions about the agency’s ability to move cases toward resolution, but he cautioned that the figure does not necessarily indicate an increase in misconduct.

Newsweek

• “What strikes me as interesting is the number of open investigations,” — John Sandweg, acting ICE director under President Barack Obama

Newsweek