Federal immigration agents tried — and failed — to apprehend targeted Brooklyn residents amid six raids throughout the borough, Mayor Bill de Blasio confirmed on Wednesday.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents attempted to gain access to a Bay Ridge property Wednesday morning, one day after raiding homes in Sunset Park and Midwood, according to a spokeswoman for the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs.
The ICE agents’ weekday sorties follow three attempted raids in Sunset Park on Saturday, July 13. This paper originally reported two raids Saturday, but Immigrant Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a third raid took place.
The federal enforcement blitz is part of a week-long action ordered by President Trump and directed at immigrants who have missed court appearances or have a deportation order against them in 10 cities nationwide.
Sunset Park, home to large Hispanic and Asian enclaves, has seen four raids since Saturday, more than anywhere else in the city, and the effect has been terrifying, according to one civic leader.
“The last few days have been very hard on our community,” said Cesar Zuniga, the chair of Community Board 7, at a meeting on Wednesday.
“ICE is very intentionally using scare tactics and psychological warfare against our community,” Zuniga added.
ICE agents have also been spotted in Harlem and Far Rockaway, and there have been eight attempted ICE arrests citywide within the last week. None of the targeted residents opened the door to the immigration agents, according to officials.
The federal agents failure to apprehend their New York City targets may be due in part to actions taken by city organizations and elected officials, including Sunset Park Councilman Carlos Menchaca, whose office distributed multilingual “Know Your Rights” information, and a nonprofit dedicated to immigrant rights called the New Sanctuary Coalition, which organizes daily patrols of Sunset Park to document ICE activity.
The Mayor’s office has also condemned the raids.
“In the face of heartless raids that would tear families apart, we remain steadfast in our commitment to support and defend immigrant communities,” said Bitta Mostofi, the Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs.
