ICE Arrests 4 Men In SOMA After Traffic Stop, Police Say

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — ICE officers arrested four men in Maplewood on Tuesday, authorities say.

According to the Maplewood Police Department, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security notified local police at 8:36 a.m. that federal law enforcement officers stopped a vehicle on the 1800-block of Springfield Avenue.

Four men were arrested, authorities said.

“The Maplewood Police Department was not involved in this incident, and were not contacted by federal law enforcement to assist,” local authorities said.

The Maplewood Police Department follows New Jersey Attorney General’s Immigrant Trust Directive regarding federal immigration arrests. Under these guidelines, local police are prohibited from taking several actions:

• Stop, question, arrest, search, or detain any individual based solely on actual or suspected immigration status
• Ask the immigration status of any individual, unless doing so is necessary and relevant to the ongoing investigation of a crime
• Enforce warrants that have not been signed by a judge
• Participate in ICE’s civil immigration enforcement operations

In 2017, the Maplewood Township Committee unanimously adopted a resolution “Expressing Maplewood’s Commitment to Equal, Respectful and Dignified Treatment of All People, Regardless of Their Immigrant Status and to Remain a Welcoming Community.”

The “welcoming resolution” prohibits township employees from reporting on people based on immigration status. Additionally, the township can’t expend funds or resources to enforce federal immigration laws – unless ordered to do so by the courts or the state.

In April 2025, the Maplewood Township Committee unanimously adopted a resolution In support of the New Jersey Immigrant Trust Act, which Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed into law in March.

The following month, Maplewood landed on the Trump administration’s new list of sanctuary cities that are allegedly “defying federal immigration law.” Other municipalities in Essex County that were listed included Bloomfield, East Orange, Montclair, Newark and South Orange.

• Related: ICE ‘Not Welcome’ In Maplewood, Town Committee Members Say
• Related: Feds Put Maplewood On 'Sanctuary City' List, Demand Compliance

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