50 Detained In Danbury ICE Operations, Including Parents Taken At School Drop-offs: Officials

DANBURY, CT — Dozens of people have been detained during three days of increased ICE enforcement activity in Danbury, including parents taken around school drop-offs, officials and local immigrant advocates said during a news conference Wednesday.

Gov. Ned Lamont was joined at Kennedy Park by U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz, Danbury Mayor Roberto Alves and representatives of Danbury Unites for Immigrants as ICE activity surged during the first days of school.

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Bysiewicz said 50 people have been detained by ICE in Danbury this week. Danbury Unites for Immigrants said 16 people were detained Monday, 10 Tuesday and 25 Wednesday, bringing the group's estimate to 51 detentions over three days.

ICE has not confirmed those figures or identified people detained.

"For operational security and the safety of our officers, ICE will not disclose or discuss law enforcement operations," an ICE spokesperson said.

The agency added: "Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, if you break the law, you will face the consequences. Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S."

Connecticut Officials Address ICE Activity

Lamont condemned the increased enforcement activity and questioned whether the operations were focused on people who pose a threat to public safety.

"I was on with Secretary Mullin, and I said, 'I'm outraged,'" Lamont said. "This is the first days our kids are back in school and you've got people patrolling around our courthouses, patrolling around our schools. Stay away."

The governor said Connecticut officials have limited authority to stop federal agents from carrying out immigration enforcement, but said the state would continue working to protect residents' rights and hold federal authorities accountable.

Lamont pointed to the November elections as a path toward changing federal immigration policy, urging voters to elect a Congress that could restrict ICE funding.

"Win in November. I'm telling you what the answer is," Lamont said. "Let's take back the House of Representatives."

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy focused his remarks on reports of enforcement activity occurring around the start of the school year, accusing ICE of deliberately creating fear in the community.

"ICE is not here to protect Danbury," Murphy said. "ICE is here to put Danbury into a state of terror."

Murphy said he and U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes would demand information about the people detained and the legal basis for their arrests. He also called for Congress to withhold additional funding from the agency.

"Congress should not authorize a single additional dollar for ICE while this illegality continues," Murphy said.

Hayes focused on steps families can take immediately if they fear a loved one could be detained.

Hayes said her office has received several calls from people trying to locate relatives detained by ICE and urged families to complete congressional privacy release forms in advance, which can allow her office to more quickly assist them.

She also urged parents to update their children's emergency contacts so another trusted adult can pick them up if a parent is detained.

"What I would hate to see is a snowball effect where a parent is detained and then a child goes into state custody because there's no one to pick them up," Hayes said.

Hayes said she has also requested a meeting with regional federal immigration officials to determine the focus of the Danbury operation and how long it is expected to continue.

'They Were Taking People Everywhere,' Advocacy Group Says

Representatives of Danbury Unites for Immigrants, an immigrant advocacy group, described families separated by enforcement activity.

Clementina Lunar, a DUFI volunteer, said she spoke with a family whose child witnessed a parent being detained after putting the child on a school bus.

"When he handed the child to the bus helper, ICE came and took him," Lunar said.

She said volunteers have delivered food to residents afraid to leave their homes and watched school bus stops to help children get home safely.

"There is fear, but there is also a lot of resilience and resistance," she said.

Juan Fonseca Tapia, a Mexican immigrant and co-founder of DUFI, became emotional as he described what he said he witnessed during the operations.

"They were taking people everywhere," Fonseca Tapia said. "They hurt them. They were bleeding. I saw the chains they put on them — not handcuffs, literal chains."

He said one person was pepper-sprayed and another was hospitalized after being struck by an ICE vehicle.

ICE has not confirmed the group's detention figures or its accounts of the reported injuries.

Alves Calls For Transparency As Crowd Presses Officials

Mayor Alves called for greater transparency from federal authorities about who has been detained and why.

Alves said the city is demanding a public accounting of the number of people detained, the legal basis for the operations and prompt access to legal counsel for those taken into custody. He also called for an independent review of reported uses of force by federal agents.

Alves stressed that residents should continue to call Danbury police, firefighters and other emergency services when they need help, regardless of immigration status. He also urged people documenting federal agents to keep a safe distance and not interfere with operations.

Danbury was ranked the seventh-most diverse city in the United States in WalletHub's 2026 study of more than 500 cities.

"We have people from all over the world in this community," Alves said. "We need to come together now. We may not always agree on the strategy or the tactic, but we agree that we want ICE out of our community."

The crowd interrupted officials several times during the news conference, pressing federal, state and local leaders on what more they could do to stop the enforcement activity.

Lamont faced pointed questions about Connecticut's Trust Act, which limits when state and local law enforcement can assist federal immigration authorities.

As Lamont began responding, several people in the crowd interrupted and challenged the governor. After attempting to continue his answer, Lamont said, "All right, forget it," and walked away from the podium.