Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Sunday appeared to blame the FBI for leaking plans of a sweeping immigration raid in the Los Angeles area.
The Los Angeles Times obtained an internal government document detailing plans on a purported “large scale” Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid in the Los Angeles area by the end of February. In reaction to the news, Noem suggested “corrupt” FBI agents were behind the leak and declared that she would work “to the fullest extent” to prosecute those responsible.
“The FBI is so corrupt,” the Homeland Security secretary posted on X. “We will work with any and every agency to stop leaks and prosecute these crooked deep state agents to the fullest extent of the law.”
The FBI declined a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The operation in Los Angeles was expected to be executed in coordination with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s local offices and the FBI, according to a source that spoke with the LA Times. FBI agents were reportedly being ordered to participate in the planned raids in order to help provide “more bodies” for the operation.
Los Angeles is a sanctuary city that largely restricts local law enforcement from helping or cooperating with deportation officers, making it more difficult for ICE to locate and apprehend criminal illegal migrants.
Noem’s apparent allegation against the FBI follows other media leaks of upcoming ICE raids under the Trump administration. These reports, the administration argues, gives targets ample time to evade justice.
ICE agents conducted an immigration raid Wednesday in the Denver metro area, where the Venezuelan-based Tren De Aragua gang has established a deep presence and wreaked havoc on the local community. While the sweeping raid was anticipated to capture up to 100 criminal illegal migrants and others living unlawfully in the country, agents fell far short of their expectations.
Border czar Tom Homan said media leaks were the reason for the failed Denver operation.
“Op secs [operation security] is important,” Homan said Thursday. “That’s why when we go on these operations and the operations got leaked somehow, it makes us less successful.”
“When you leak an operation that means more bad guys are not being arrested, which means more bad guys are walking the streets,” Homan continued.
The border czar added that media ride-alongs may come to an end in order to help stop the leaks.
“I said day one, we want to be transparent to the American people,” Homan stated. “We’ve invited numerous media outlets along, but right now it’s all about Op-Sec, operation security.”
“So, we may have to stop the media ride-alongs, because I’m not pointing the finger at them, but the less people that know about these operations, the safer this for our agents,” Homan continued.
The DCNF was on scene in July when ICE agents working out of Baltimore apprehended an illegal migrant previously charged with kidnapping, abducting a child under 12, abducting a child under 16, assault in the second degree and a fourth-degree sex offense. That illegal migrant had been sentenced to 30 years in prison, but was able to roam free in the community after a local court suspended nearly his entire sentence.
President Donald Trump entered office on the promise to conduct the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. Since re-entering office, daily ICE arrests have dramatically ticked up, deportation officers have been empowered to conduct enforcement actions in more areas across the country and the administration has empowered agents across numerous federal agencies to make immigration arrests.
The Biden administration oversaw roughly 8.5 million migrant encounters along the southern border, an era of unprecedented illegal immigration into the country. Border Patrol agents and other Customs and Border Protection (CBP) employees made nearly 120,000 encounters specifically with criminal non-citizens during President Joe Biden’s time in office, according to CBP data.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect that the FBI declined to comment on the matter.
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