Human Impact Project

Federal immigration agents conducted a large-scale enforcement operation on June 28, 2026, in Shelton involving multiple vehicles and locations, resulting in the detention of at least 21 people. The Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network confirmed the operation and urged those affected to know their rights. The operation was part of a nationwide surge in immigration arrests, with ICE detaining more than 10,000 people across the U.S. over the previous five days.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested one person at a construction site near Allen Street and Easterly Parkway in State College on Saturday morning. ICE officers arrived in unmarked vehicles and detained two people; one was arrested and taken into custody while the other was released. State College Borough officials denied that the police department was involved in the operation, though video posted to social media showed ICE agents regrouping at the Municipal Building's parking lot. The arrest occurred ahead of a July 6 borough council meeting to discuss a proposed ordinance restricting local police collaboration with ICE.

On June 27, multiple ICE vehicles blocked traffic at 6th and Central in Kansas City, Kansas and conducted a roundup that detained at least four people. Agents then detained another person outside a restaurant at 7th and Northrup. A blue work truck was left abandoned at the curb with its owner gone.

Jorge, a husband and father of five, was detained by ICE last week. He is the sole provider for his family. A GoFundMe was created to help cover legal fees and living expenses during his detention.

A driver was pulled over by police on Interstate 10 in Arizona for a suspended license. After being directed to a secluded area off an exit, border patrol agents swarmed the vehicle within minutes with guns drawn. A border patrol agent broke the vehicle's window and removed the passenger, who is dark-skinned. The driver reported that a border patrol agent yelled "GUN" despite no weapon being present. The passenger was taken to a detention center. The incident was documented and reported to stopice.net.

A video posted on Instagram shows an enforcement action in Salome, Arizona involving law enforcement and Border Patrol agents. According to the post, a person was driving with a passenger whom she believed was profiled by police and flagged to federal immigration agents. The couple was pulled over, escorted to an I-10 off-ramp, and then encountered Border Patrol agents. The person who recorded the interaction stated, "They wanted to kill us," according to the source cited as StopIce.Net.

On June 27, 2026, four immigrant construction workers employed at the QTS data center in Cedar Rapids were detained by ICE agents without being informed of the reason for their arrest. The workers—Dailyn Zambrano Morales, Lenin Primera Esis, Job Guerra Finol, and Wilman Gorutt Muchacho—were intercepted by agents in unmarked vehicles while heading to work. Gorutt Muchacho stated: "They arrested me without telling me the reason or why they were doing it." The agents transported all four to the ICE office in Cedar Rapids and then to Linn County Jail. According to advocacy group Escucha Mi Voz Iowa, none of the detained workers have criminal records.

On June 27, 2026, at the intersection of 6th Street and Central Avenue in Strawberry Hill, ICE agents used four vehicles to block a Chevrolet Silverado and detain a man with ten officers involved in the operation. Witness Alison Hawkins reported seeing five agents in full military tactical gear and five others dressed as regular workers with a lawn trailer. After the arrest, one of the officers drove away in the detained man's truck. The incident was documented and posted on social media by witnesses.

A Russian national entered the United States and was released on his own recognizance in July 2022. On June 27, 2026, ICE re-detained him after a routine check-in with immigration authorities. He is seeking asylum in the United States. He filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus and motion for temporary restraining order challenging his detention. The court found that his prior release by immigration authorities created a liberty interest in his continued release and that his re-detention without a pre-deprivation hearing violated due process. On July 8, 2026, the federal court granted his habeas petition and ordered his immediate release on the same terms and conditions he was subject to prior to his re-detention.

A 19-year-old Russian asylum seeker who had been paroled and living lawfully in California since April 2023 was arrested by ICE on June 27, 2026, at a worksite without notice or pre-deprivation hearing. He was transported to Adelanto ICE Processing Center. A federal judge granted his habeas corpus petition, finding that ICE violated his Fifth Amendment due process rights by detaining him without a pre-deprivation hearing, and ordered his immediate release.

In recent weeks, ICE detained at least 39 people across the Milwaukee area in a surge of enforcement operations. Videos of approximately 17 separate incidents documented agents drawing firearms when drivers were not resisting, breaking car windows to extract people from vehicles, pinning people to the ground and against walls, and using tasers. ICE stated the operation targeted individuals without documents, not specifically those with criminal records, though some arrested had prior criminal histories. Legal experts expressed concern about the necessity and proportionality of the aggressive tactics used.

Oliver was detained by ICE agents on June 27, 2026, while heading to work with his father-in-law. According to his wife Claudia Sotelo, Oliver has no criminal history and was detained unlawfully. This detention occurred months after Claudia's father was also detained by ICE in December 2025 and subsequently released in February 2026. The family is seeking financial support to cover legal expenses for Oliver's case.

Carlos Iván Mendoza Hernández was shot seven times by ICE agents during a traffic stop in Patterson, Stanislaus County, California on April 8, 2026. According to dashcam video and eyewitness accounts, Hernández reversed away from officers who had drawn weapons, then drove forward as agents opened fire; ICE stated he attempted to run over agents with his vehicle. While hospitalized at Doctors Medical Center in Modesto, FBI agents accessed his HIPAA-protected medical records without clear authorization or warrant, prompting concerns from his federal public defenders. After discharge, Hernández was arrested by the FBI and placed in solitary confinement at California City Detention Center with his gunshot wound injuries remaining unaddressed. On June 27, 2026, he was removed from the facility for a scheduled medical appointment to evaluate bullet fragments, but his family received no updates for hours and the detention center refused to confirm his whereabouts or safety.

An Ecuadorian man was arrested by ICE agents at an immigration court at 26 Federal Plaza in Lower Manhattan on Thursday, June 26, 2026. The man had fled persecution in his home country, entered the U.S., and was released from detention while his immigration case proceeded. He appeared at court as legally required for his scheduled hearing. ICE cited a 2025 conviction for disorderly conduct as justification, but advocates with Make the Road New York argue the arrest violates a federal court order issued May 18, 2026, that barred ICE from making arrests at Manhattan immigration courts except in narrow circumstances. The man has since been transferred to the D. Ray James ICE Processing Center in Folkston, Georgia.

A father was detained by ICE while traveling to work, leaving his work truck abandoned and his cell phone off. His family is seeking legal assistance and fundraising support to prevent his deportation.

A 23-year-old woman working in roofing was detained by ICE in Minnesota and subsequently transferred to South Dakota. Her family is fundraising $10,000 for legal expenses to help her defend her case.

A construction business owner with no criminal history was detained by ICE while traveling to work. He is the father of an 11-year-old daughter and an 8-year-old nonverbal autistic son who depends on him for daily care and support. His family is seeking legal representation to fight his detention and reunify the family.

Carlos Arreaga, a Syracuse resident and active community member for the past eight years, was taken into ICE custody on the morning of June 26 while on his way to work, without a warrant, according to his family's GoFundMe page. He has filed for asylum in the U.S. and is now held at the federal detention facility in Batavia, which has been criticized for overcrowding and poor conditions. Despite an order from a federal judge that he be given a bond hearing, Arreaga continues to be denied bond. His wife, Amelia, set up a fundraiser to cover legal fees and living expenses after his detention left the family without its sole breadwinner, and about 70 community members gathered at a vigil in Syracuse calling for his release.

Artyom Vovchenko, a 27-year-old Russian who deserted the military in 2022 in opposition to the war in Ukraine, was deported back to Russia by the Trump administration last summer after spending 13 months in three U.S. detention centers and being denied asylum. After his return to Russia, where he faced potential imprisonment or forced deployment to Ukraine, Vovchenko escaped again and crossed into Belarus earlier this year. He is now in an undisclosed country attempting to start a new life.

A Mexican citizen who entered the United States in July 2004 without inspection was arrested and detained by ICE on June 26, 2026 at the Philadelphia Federal Detention Center. He had previously been detained in 2018, released on bond in May 2018, and had his immigration proceedings taken off calendar in December 2022. The government sought to detain him without a bond hearing under INA § 1225, claiming he was "seeking admission." The court granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release, finding the government's interpretation of the mandatory detention statute unlawful and unwarranted as applied to someone already present in the country for over two decades.

Three Mexican citizens without lawful immigration status were arrested by ICE agents on June 26, 2026, in San Francisco after leaving a residence during an operation targeting another individual. The agents conducted warrantless arrests without making any individualized assessment that the petitioners were likely to escape before a warrant could be obtained, violating 8 U.S.C. § 1357(a)(2). The court found the arrests unlawful and issued a temporary restraining order directing their immediate release from custody.

Wilbur Garcia, an 18-year-old honors high school graduate from South Los Angeles, was detained by ICE during an asylum appointment scheduled one day after his graduation. Garcia, whose family fled political persecution in Nicaragua and has been in the asylum process for years, was held at the Adelanto ICE detention center for over two weeks in poor conditions including sewage overflow in cells and showers, and insufficient food provisions. After public defenders challenged ICE's justification for detaining him—that he was no longer covered under his mother's asylum application upon turning 18—a judge ordered his release on June 26. Garcia said he was helped by older detainees who treated him like family. He plans to pursue pre-med classes in college.

A Guatemalan national who entered the United States in 2007 was arrested by immigration authorities on June 26, 2026, while traveling to work. He was detained at the Philadelphia Federal Detention Center under mandatory detention provisions of 8 U.S.C. § 1225 without a bond hearing. On June 30, 2026, the District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granted his habeas corpus petition, finding his detention unlawful because he was not 'seeking admission' under the statute, and ordered his immediate release.

Tania Romero Naranjo, a 24-year-old Cuban from the Isle of Youth, was detained by ICE on June 26 while attending a routine supervision appointment in Portland, Texas. Romero Naranjo entered the United States four years ago with an I-220A form, which allows release under conditions while migration proceedings continue but does not provide definitive legal status. She is the mother of a three-year-old U.S. citizen child who has been left in the care of his father since her detention. She had no criminal record and worked in a high-risk job involving fireproof materials at oil refineries. Her family is demanding she not be deported to Cuba, as it would separate her from her American citizen son.

Eight children from three South Florida families departed Miami International Airport on a flight to Guatemala City to reunite with relatives after their parents were deported or chose to leave the country. Three of the children are U.S. citizens. The Guatemalan-Maya Center coordinated travel logistics, provided chaperones, and supported the families through the separation.

A 44-year-old man from Ukraine suffered a stroke while in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody and did not receive suitable medical care despite showing clear signs of medical emergency, including seizure-like movements. The case was highlighted in a joint report by Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights documenting that the rate of people dying in ICE custody has reached its highest level in over a decade, with at least 52 deaths reported since Trump's second term began in January 2025.

ICE conducted an enforcement operation in Columbus and Platte County, Nebraska on June 26, 2026, targeting individuals who had failed to comply with previously issued deportation orders. One person was taken into custody during the operation. The detained individual had been previously deported. No further details were released by Columbus Police or ICE.

Arturo, a Guatemalan man who fled extortion and violence, was detained by ICE while returning home from a work shift. He was scheduled for hernia surgery and has Type II diabetes, but is receiving no medical attention in out-of-state detention. His family—wife Maricel and three children—faces financial hardship due to loss of his income.

Antonia Escobar's father was detained by ICE on June 25, 2026, while returning home from work. According to his daughter, he came to the country through legal means and has no criminal record. He was initially held at an ICE detention center in Broward County, Florida, before being transferred to the Otero County Processing Center in New Mexico. His bond request was denied, and the family is appealing the decision. His daughter, who is turning 18, is fundraising to cover legal fees and other costs associated with his case, as her mother stopped working to manage family affairs and the legal proceedings.

Gavilan Sanchez, a Mexican national without legal immigration status and mother of U.S. citizen children, was arrested by ICE agents during the same operation that resulted in the detention of her husband, Jesus Acevedo Sanchez, outside a Baltimore school in June. According to her attorney, when agents told her to cooperate, they threatened to do to her "what we did to your husband or worse." ICE arrested her for assault, claiming she punched agents during the incident. In early July, a federal judge ordered her release. Since the arrest, her daughters have been staying with relatives.

Leidys Barrabi, a 25-year-old Cuban mother, revealed on Instagram that she received a deportation order after four years in the United States. Barrabi built a beauty salon, Heaven's Spa Miami, from scratch and established a stable life for her daughter and family. In a video posted June 25, 2026, she expressed disbelief at the order but stated she would continue fighting and believes God has control of her life. The post garnered over 757,000 views and thousands of supportive comments from followers urging her to appeal.

An ICE detainee held at California City Immigration Processing Center filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his detention. He received an initial bond hearing on March 17, 2026, where the immigration court determined he was a flight risk and danger to the community. At a second hearing on May 28, 2026, the immigration court denied his bond redetermination request by claiming lack of jurisdiction based on mandatory detention. The federal court ordered respondent to determine his eligibility for a bond hearing under 8 C.F.R. § 1003.19(e) within seven days and, if eligible, to conduct the hearing within fourteen days, or immediately release him.

A detained immigrant was held pending removal proceedings without being afforded a bond hearing. He challenged his detention through a habeas corpus petition in federal court. Following the Sixth Circuit's decision in Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft, the court granted the petition and ordered respondents to provide him with a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) within ten days or release him from custody.

A 29-year-old Dominican Republic citizen who entered Puerto Rico without inspection in 2021 was arrested by ICE agents on June 25, 2026 during a traffic stop in San Juan. He had been living in Puerto Rico for nearly five years with no criminal record, had married a U.S. citizen, had an approved I-130 family petition, and had a pending provisional unlawful presence waiver application. The court granted a temporary restraining order preventing his transfer outside Puerto Rico and ordered he receive a bond hearing before an Immigration Judge, finding he likely fell under discretionary detention provisions rather than mandatory detention.

A 39-year-old man from Mexico died from cardiac arrest likely caused by septic shock after his requests for medical help regarding an infected abscess were mishandled while in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. The case was documented in a joint report by Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights examining deaths in ICE facilities, which found that at least 52 deaths have been reported in ICE custody since January 2025, with the mortality rate up 140 percent compared to the previous year.

Ozgur Demirkan, a 30-year-old Turkish national and former Kirkwood Community College student, was detained by ICE agents at his Iowa City apartment on June 25, 2026. Demirkan had lived in Iowa since 2018 on a student visa and returned to the United States in 2022 during the Turkey-Ukraine conflict. According to community organizers, he fears forced military enlistment if deported to Turkey and aspires to continue studying medicine. The detention occurred following Congress's approval of a $70 billion funding increase for ICE and Border Patrol.

Lisbeth Portillo, 58, was deported to Venezuela on June 24, 2026, on Flight 164 carrying approximately 146 people. She was housed at Hotel Santuario La Llanada with over 100 other recently deported Venezuelans, in a second-floor room with 16 other women. Twin earthquakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude struck hours after her arrival, causing the building to collapse. Portillo was buried under a beam but escaped the rubble, surviving with bruises covering her body. She was reunited with her children the following night. Portillo had crossed the U.S. border in November 2021 with a pending asylum claim and had lived in South Florida for more than four years before her deportation.

Anderson Daniel Salcedo, 22, a construction worker who had lived in the U.S. for three years, was deported to Venezuela on June 24, 2026 via Flight 164. Upon arrival, he was taken to Hotel Santuario La Llanada in La Guaira for processing. Twin earthquakes struck hours later, collapsing the hotel. Salcedo was trapped in the rubble for 40 hours without access to his phone or documents—which had been withheld by authorities—leaving his family unable to locate or contact him during the crisis. He was rescued and admitted to Caracas's university hospital, where both of his legs were amputated due to his injuries.

Julio Irungaray Sr., a Mexican national who has lived in Utah for 35 years, was detained by ICE agents outside his home on Wednesday, June 24, 2026. At the time of detention, he was working two jobs at a Mexican restaurant and movie theater. He is being held in a jail in Evanston, Wyoming, and faces deportation despite being in the process of formally appealing a deportation order. Family and supporters rallied Thursday to demand his release, describing him as a hardworking community member.

A father and asylum seeker was detained by ICE at MetLife Stadium while attending a FIFA Club World Cup final with his children on July 13, 2025. Local police questioned him about flying a small drone in the parking lot—a civil violation typically resulting in a fine—and asked about his immigration status, leading to his transfer to ICE agents. He spent three months in immigration detention before his asylum claim was denied. He was subsequently deported to his country of origin, which he said he had fled in 2022 due to threats from armed groups. He has since warned immigrant World Cup fans about the risks of attending such events in the United States.

The Wichita County Sheriff's Office, in cooperation with the Texas Department of Public Safety and Electra Police Department, conducted a joint enforcement operation on June 25 that resulted in 24 individuals being detained for unlawful presence in the United States. The operation, called "Operation June Bug," included 132 traffic stops and resulted in 109 equipment violations and 15 vehicle impounds. Those detained were from Mexico, India, Cuba, Algeria, Venezuela, Tajikistan, and Russia.

A three-day joint operation between the Pettis County Sheriff's Office and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from June 23-25, 2026 resulted in 18 arrests in Sedalia, Missouri. ICE confirmed that five individuals from Mexico were arrested, some with prior criminal histories including DUI and failure to appear charges. Sheriff Brad Anders stated the operation targeted individuals previously identified as fugitives or connected to existing criminal investigations, including those with violent criminal histories, outstanding warrants, sexual offenses, and gang affiliations. The operation was conducted under an ICE Task Force Model agreement signed by the Pettis County Sheriff's Office in April 2026, which authorizes local officers to identify and arrest individuals believed to be undocumented under ICE supervision. Multiple residents reported observing arrests at several businesses in the area, and the operation drew criticism from some Sedalia residents concerned about economic impacts on local businesses and industries reliant on immigrant labor.

Brady Tillett, an asylum seeker from Belize, has been detained by ICE at the California City Detention Facility in Kern County for nearly two years. In a Los Angeles Times op-ed, he describes inhumane conditions including forced labor, medical neglect, and retaliation for advocating for others' medical care. Tillett has filed habeas petitions resulting in the release of several other detainees and is participating in broader detention resistance efforts including hunger strikes and labor strikes to challenge U.S. immigration detention practices and demand closure of the facility.

Moises Domingo Rico Rosales, a Nicaraguan national, was arrested after allegedly exposing himself to one woman and attempting to abduct another at Wakefield Park in Annandale, Virginia. He was previously arrested in Fairfax County in 2024 on felony drug trafficking charges but was released after local officials declined to honor an ICE detainer. He is now charged with abduction with intent to defile and indecent exposure, and ICE has lodged a new detainer. Abdul Jalloh, a 32-year-old from Sierra Leone, was charged with second-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of 41-year-old Stephanie Minter at a Virginia bus stop. He had over 30 prior arrests and was released by Fairfax County officials despite ICE detainer concerns, drawing scrutiny to the county's sanctuary-style policies.

Leonardo Santiago "Santi" Soto Uribe, a 13-year-old 9th grader, was arrested by ICE agents in June along with his father, Benjamin Lerma-Huipio, just outside San Antonio. The boy is being held in a child welfare center in San Antonio while his father is detained at T. Don Hutto Detention Facility in Taylor. Rep. Joaquin Castro reports that ICE initially told the boy he could go home but then reversed the decision, and that the child has not showered and has only been given cookies and juice.

Jose de Jesús Ortiz Ibañez was detained by ICE. He had entered the United States legally on a work visa and had spent years working and building a life in the country. His family is raising funds to cover legal representation costs.

Miguel, 22, was taken into ICE custody while working in Houston. He came to the United States seeking better opportunities and supports himself and his mother. His partner Xiomarah is raising funds for legal representation to fight his detention.

Luis was arrested by ICE for noncitizenship while driving to work and has been held in an ICE detention center. He is expected to be deported to Mexico, a country he has not visited in over 20 years. His family—a spouse and four children including a nonverbal three-year-old and a three-month-old infant—has lost its primary income and faces immediate financial hardship, including potential wage garnishment and credit damage.

On June 24, immigration agents entered El Oaxaqueño, a family-owned Oaxacan restaurant, bakery and supermarket in downtown Lakewood, New Jersey, through the back door and detained 18 people within about an hour, including six of the business's own workers. Among those detained was Bernarda Hernandez, along with 17 others without legal status, and worker Fermin Velez, who was arrested without a deportation order or arrest warrant and later released with help from a lawyer. The restaurant's owners, including Vicky Santiago, helped secure the release of most of their detained workers and said they would continue to stand up for their employees. DHS said ICE had gone to the parking lot based on a tip about a person charged with theft and forgery, and that some of those detained had prior charges for trespassing, obstruction and traffic offenses.

Eduardo José Osal Mujica, 32, crossed the Darién Gap into the U.S., turned himself in to immigration authorities, and applied for asylum while working installing roofs and driving for Uber, settling first in Denver and later Wyoming. Local police detained him during a traffic stop in Wyoming, after which he was transferred through detention facilities in Colorado, Arizona and Texas before signing a deportation order. He was among 146 Venezuelans deported on Flight 164, which landed in Maiquetía, Venezuela on June 24, after which he and other deportees were taken to the Negra Hipólita Health Hotel for medical checkups before planned release to their home cities. The hotel collapsed in an earthquake that day, killing an unknown number of deportees while in Venezuelan custody. His wife, Danielys Hurtado, spent five days searching for his body among bags of corpses at an improvised morgue in a converted grain-storage facility. Nearly two months later, the Venezuelan government has released no official information on those who died, with survivor estimates ranging between 12 and 32.