Overview
- The AP reports some new ICE officers began work before full background checks, and DHS said they started under temporary tentative selection status with vetting still in progress, guided by an internal memo that routes derogatory tips to internal affairs.
- Public records reviewed by the AP show several hires with recent bankruptcies or debt lawsuits, including Carmine Gurliacci, which experts say can increase the risk of bribery or extortion.
- The AP identified hires with prior misconduct claims, including Andrew Penland, who left a Kansas sheriff’s office after a false-arrest lawsuit that settled for $75,000.
- ICE says it completed a 12,000-person hiring push that doubled its force to help carry out President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign funded by Congress.
- ICE shields employee identities to deter harassment, which the AP says prevents a full public accounting of the new workforce.