WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said Friday that New York officials have not honored a single detainer request from his department involving illegal immigrants held in state or local custody, including individuals with what he described as extensive criminal records.
According to Mullin, the Department of Homeland Security has sent 14,766 detainer requests to New York law enforcement agencies. The migrants involved have faced a combined 47,750 felony charges, he said.
“Silence. Absolute silence is what we’ve got from New York off of those retainers,” Mullin told reporters at DHS headquarters.
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“So you have to ask yourself, why would they release these individuals back onto the streets? They’re illegals,” he said. “They have no right to be back into the United States. They’ve committed a crime. We know that they’re the worst, the worst.”
Mullin’s remarks came just hours after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement-involved shooting in the Bronx. Authorities said the incident involved 28-year-old Oscar Belgal, a suspected gang member, while a 5-year-old boy believed to be his son was seated in the back of Belgal’s SUV.