In more news on immigration, activists and civil liberties advocates are issuing warnings over reports that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, known as ICE, is seeking to become an intelligence agency. Critics say the move would give ICE access to an array of raw intelligence data that could lead to further abuses as ICE carries out President Trump’s mass deportation efforts. This is Jake Laperruque, of the independent watchdog agency, the Project on Government Oversight.
Jake Laperruque: “Well, I think if we’ve seen in the last year ICE demonstrate a willingness to be more severe and more arbitrary in its arrests, deportations and actions, this would enable them to a much higher degree. It’s really like taking someone who you’re not comfortable giving like a kitchen knife to and handing them a grenade.”
Meanwhile, the chief counsel for ICE in Seattle has been charged with stealing the identities of seven immigrants in order to defraud credit card companies. Raphael Sanchez has resigned from the agency amid the charges and faces one count of aggravated identity theft and another of wire fraud.