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Newark, NJ – Four detainees escaped from the privately-run Delaney Hall immigration detention center Friday, prompting a security review and investigation into the incident. The escape follows reports of unrest at the facility stemming from concerns over food access and detainee treatment.
According to US Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ), who was briefed on the situation along with Representative Rob Menendez (D-NJ), the detainees breached a weak interior wall and an exterior wall leading to a parking lot. Kim expressed concern about the facility’s security and called the breach “incompetence and recklessness.” He indicated that detainees will be transferred out of Delaney Hall and that the facility’s future is uncertain, pending further review by ICE headquarters.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka echoed these concerns, citing reports of withheld food, poor treatment, and the subsequent escape. He has demanded answers from both the facility’s owner, GEO Group, and the Department of Homeland Security. Representative LaMonica McIver (D-NJ) also expressed alarm over the reports of unrest and alleged abusive conditions within the facility, noting a lack of cooperation from ICE in obtaining information.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed the escape and stated that law enforcement is actively searching for the missing detainees. Both ICE and GEO Group deferred comment to law enforcement.
This incident comes on the heels of another controversy at Delaney Hall last month involving Mayor Baraka and Representative McIver. McIver was recently indicted for allegedly assaulting federal officers while attempting to prevent Baraka’s arrest for trespassing at the facility. McIver maintains her innocence and claims the charges are politically motivated, while the trespassing charge against Baraka has been dropped.