Increasingly frequent and even deadly U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids and “kidnappings” during immigration hearings are causing growing weariness among New Yorkers.
On January 12, 2026, an undisclosed Venezuelan City Council staff member was picked up by ICE in Bethpage, Nassau County, at a routine immigration appointment.
“He had legal authorization to remain in the country until October of this year,” confirmed City Council Speaker Julie Menin in a statement. “We are doing everything we can to secure his immediate release, and we demand swift and transparent action by the federal government on this apparent overreach. Across the nation, we have seen aggressive escalations by ICE that raise serious concerns on the use of excessive force and a lack of accountability. As New Yorkers, we will stand up for the rights and dignity of every neighbor.”
Mayor Zohran Mamdani added in a social media post: “I am outraged to hear a New York City Council employee was detained in Nassau County by federal immigration officials at a routine immigration appointment. This is an assault on our democracy, on our city, and our values. I am calling for his immediate release and will continue to monitor the situation.”
A citywide poll conducted by the Honan Strategy Group, before the shooting death of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis by ICE last week, finds that about 67% of New Yorkers oppose ICE raids being conducted in NYC while 32% still support them. When asked more directly, about 58% of those surveyed said the NYPD should refuse involvement with ICE to protect NYC’s sanctuary laws, and about 66% say raids create fear, chaos, and endanger immigrant communities.
However, due to the escalated feeling of insecurity, thousands of demonstrators took to New York City’s streets in a show of solidarity with Minneapolis and to march against the federal agency and its seemingly sanctioned violence.
Mamdani bluntly called the shooting of Good a “murder” and questioned ICE agents training in a recent CNN interview. “It is a glimpse into what has been a year full of cruelty, and I think what many New Yorkers woke up feeling today is a heightened sense of anxiety and fear as to whether they were safe in leaving their homes. That’s especially true for immigrant New Yorkers,” said Mamdani.
One of the demonstrations started with a brief rally at Manhattan’s Grand Army Plaza, where protesters were joined by Councilmember Alexa Avilés, former Comptroller Brad Lander, Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. They marched down Fifth Avenue carrying giant heads crafted to look like high-profile New York officials, such as U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, as well as House Democrat Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
“We need ICE off our streets. They are a danger to every resident of our city,” said Avilés in a statement. “While our tax dollars are being funneled into violent kidnappings, working-class people everywhere are suffering without access to healthcare and affordable housing. Donald Trump has made it clear he does not value working-class lives in the U.S. or in any other country.”
Good, a white 37-year-old U.S citizen killed on January 7, is far from the only death among an increasingly deadly immigration crackdown by the Trump administration. Keith Porter Jr., a Black 43-year-old U.S citizen and father of two, was shot by an off-duty ICE agent in Northridge, California, during a New Year’s Eve celebration just a week earlier.
“This is not the first killing arising out of the Trump administration’s violent, aggressive, and costly immigration tactics,” said Legal Defense Fund (LDF) President and Director-Counsel Janai Nelson in a statement.
Less acknowledged is the record-high number of deaths of detainees in ICE custody. According to NPR numbers, at least 20 deaths had occurred by October 2025. This represented a peak in 2025 for the first time since 32 deaths were recorded in 2004 and 20 deaths in 2005. And at least four people have died “while in custody of U.S. immigration authorities over the first 10 days of 2026.”
“Just like with George Floyd, they will kill people in cold blood because they think we are lesser,” said Daniel Kim, federal worker and organizer with the Federal Unionists Network NYC Hub. “Ordinary but brave people nationwide have risen up to protect their neighbors at great personal cost. It is long overdue that our elected officials show the same courage and do right by their people and their country.”
As of Tuesday, Jan. 13, Menin and Congressmember Dan Goldman have been coordinating with advocates at the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) and lawyers at the New York Legal Assistance Group. They filed an emergency habeas petition last night and have confirmed that the staffer is still being held in ICE custody in New York State at least.
“As part of his application to work for the Council, the staffer cleared the standard background check conducted for all applicants,” they said in a joint statement. “The Council has been unable to contact the staffer but is working to get in touch with the staffer’s immigration counsel. We will continue to provide further updates when appropriate.”