Overview
- The interagency effort has operated quietly since March 2025 and became public this week through reporting that cited internal ICE records and officials.
- TSA provides passenger lists several times a week that ICE cross-checks against its database of final removal orders, enabling agents to make arrests before flights.
- A DHS spokesperson said those in the country illegally should only fly to self-deport, underscoring the administration’s plan to use airports for enforcement.
- Documented cases include the Nov. 20 detention at Boston Logan of 19-year-old Any Lucía López Belloza, who was deported to Honduras two days later.
- Former officials and rights groups warn of delays, security trade-offs and intimidation effects, while DHS cites more than 2.5 million departures since Jan. 20, 2025, including about 605,000 formal removals.