NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani releases audit accusing federal immigration agents of misleading tactics

Findings from audits of six New York City agencies intended to ensure compliance with the city’s sanctuary laws found that federal immigration authorities use aggressive and deceptive tactics, the office of Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Friday.

The audits and recommendations were part of Executive Order 13, which mandated a public safety audit for six specific city agencies: the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS), the New York Police Department (NYPD), and the Departments of Correction (DOC), Probation (DOP), Health & Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), and Social Services (DSS).

The order was issued by Mamdani upon taking office in an effort to fulfill a promise to protect the city’s immigrant communities.

The 19-page executive summary details the interactions between the agencies and federal immigration authorities, as well as recommendations to close loopholes and blind spots in the city’s sanctuary policies.

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“The findings and recommendations released today will strengthen City agencies’ protocols when interacting with federal authorities and ensure that all New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status, can safely access the City services they deserve,” said Faiza Ali, commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, in a statement.

Among the findings were that federal immigration authorities have intensified their targeting of city shelters, resulting in a sharp increase in detainer requests to the city’s Department of Correction and New York Police Department. The report also accused immigration authorities of using aggressive and misleading tactics.

The NYPD received 3,672 requests for civil immigration detainers in 2025—a massive spike from just 99 requests the previous year. The NYPD did not transfer any individuals to ICE in response to these requests.

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In June 2025, personnel with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) visited a shelter and initially falsely identified themselves as Fire Department officials, the report states. They only admitted they were with DHS after a city employee demanded identification.

In April 2025, officers from several federal agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), DHS, the FBI, and the DEA visited shelters ten times, sometimes in plainclothes. They used tactics such as asking to conduct “wellness checks” on children in order to inquire about specific clients. In other instances, agents presented subpoenas or administrative warrants, which do not legally authorize access to shelters, though they did present legally binding judicial warrants on two occasions (leading to one arrest).

In another instance, ICE agents entered a Department of Probation (DOP) building in Brooklyn and asked to use the bathroom, but then attempted to look through the facility’s sign-in book. Staff intercepted them, checked their identification, and escorted them out, the report said.

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Mamdani has been a vocal opponent of ICE and the Trump administration’s immigration agenda. In a statement, he called the audit a “critical step towards strengthening compliance with our local laws and reinforcing New York City’s protections for immigrant communities.”

“I am proud to share key findings and recommendations from the audit that will ensure that we are responding to the changing nature of federal immigration enforcement and protecting the rights of all New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status,” he said.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the White House urged leaders to cooperate with ICE. 

“ICE officers act heroically to enforce the law and protect American communities — local officials should work with them, not against them,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said. “Anyone doing otherwise is simply doing the bidding of criminal illegal aliens. The Trump Administration will not waver on enforcing federal immigration law.”

The recommendations in the report include:

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• Limiting the inclusion of immigration status details in pre-sentencing investigation reports.
• Strengthening internal protocols for tracking and publicly posting detainer requests.
• Revising shelter incident reports and protocols regarding access to city property.
• Establishing protocols requiring the NYPD Communications Division to notify its Operations Division about any 911 calls or requests involving federal immigration authorities.