Immigration raid in wealthy liberal NJ town upsets local officials

✅ ICE agents arrived in Princeton before dawn on Wednesday morning

✅ The agency sought two specific individuals

✅ 'Outside parties' interfered with arrest of one of the individuals

PRINCETON — One person sought by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents was arrested and another escaped capture Wednesday morning in a “targeting law enforcement action,” according to the agency.

Agents began knocking on doors around 4 a.m. in Princeton's Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood, an advocate for immigrants told Planet Princeton. People riding bikes were also questioned, according to the unnamed advocate.

ICE spokesman Emilio Dabul told New Jersey 101.5 that the agency "does not conduct indiscriminate targeting of non-citizens. Agents were looking for "two specific non-citizen criminals."

“Outside parties” prevented the second individual from being arrested, according to Dabul, who said that interfering with an ERO enforcement action is a crime and subject to federal prosecution. Dabul did not disclose the specific charges against the two sought or details about the interference.

ALSO READ: New Jersey commuters whacked with another toll hike

Community is 'deeply troubled'

Community leaders including U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J., 12th District, were upset at the way the raid was carried out.

Princeton Mayor Mark Freda said the community was “deeply troubled” and “starkly contradict our core values of respect and dignity for all.”

Freda stressed that Princeton police did not assist ICE agents on Wednesday and officials were not told they were coming.

The state's Immigrant Trust Directive prohibits local law enforcement in New Jersey from cooperating with ICE. Officers "cannot stop, question, arrest, search, or detain any individual based solely on actual or suspected immigration status" under the directive.

Watson Coleman accused agents of stopping Hispanic residents “seemingly at random to interrogate them and demand documentation” and called ICE’s actions illegal.

The Democrat said her office would be reaching out to the community to make sure they know their rights during these type of searches.

"I will be looking for answers to this matter at hand to ensure that this does not happen again," Watson Coleman said.

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom