U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer and U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan are demanding a federal investigation into ICE’s handling of a proposed immigration detention facility in Orange County.
The lawmakers said Feb. 27 they asked the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General to review what they called mismanagement and a lack of transparency tied to a possible mass detention center at 29 Elizabeth Drive in the Village of Chester.
Schumer and Ryan said ICE provided contradictory information about plans for the former Pep Boys warehouse. They said ICE initially told media outlets it had purchased the property, capable of holding up to 1,500 people, but later retracted the claim.
County property records showed no sale or deed transfer, according to the lawmakers. Local officials from both parties said they were not briefed on the proposal.
“DHS’s management in the Hudson Valley has been an abject disaster, shrouded in chaos, secrecy, and confusion,” Schumer said. “We are demanding concrete answers and an investigation into DHS’s actions in Orange County because this is unacceptable.”
Ryan said ICE ignored requests for information from his office and local leaders.
“Not a single elected official – Democrat or Republican – supports this plan, nor were they briefed on it at any point,” Ryan said. “We don’t want a mass detention facility. We want answers, and ICE has a duty to provide them.”
In a letter to DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari, the lawmakers asked for a review of whether ICE purchased or attempted to purchase the property, whether it followed federal procurement rules and how it communicated with local officials and residents.
They also asked the inspector general to examine ICE’s public statements about the project and determine whether internal oversight systems failed.
Schumer and Ryan said they want a written response confirming a comprehensive and independent review.
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