Nassau County police will be granted federal authority to help arrest and deport illegal criminal migrants under an agreement announced Tuesday with the Trump administration.
Under the arrangement, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement will “cross-designate” or delegate authority to 10 Nassau County detectives to enforce immigration law, as well as perform their other policing duties.
ICE has the authority to grant local law enforcement federal immigration enforcement powers under its 287(g) program.
The county will receive federal funding for assisting with immigration enforcement.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman jumped at the chance to have his police department participate in the program when ICE officials reached out and sought cooperation to arrest and deport illegal aliens committing crimes.
“We don’t want illegal immigrants roaming around our community committing crimes. We don’t want them in our community,” Blakeman told The Post.
“Our detectives will arrest illegal immigrants engaged in criminal activity. We want to make sure these people are locked up and deported.”
As part of the agreement, Nassau County will also detain a suspected illegal immigrant for up to 72 hours and will give ICE a permanent presence at the county jail, Blakeman said.
Blakeman’s office noted that ICE was evicted from the county jail under his Democratic predecessor, Laura Curran.
“We are very grateful that President Trump and [border czar] Tom Homan are serious about a problem that has plagued our region,” said Blakeman, who claimed ICE did not seek such cooperation during the Biden administration.
Nassau County will become the largest police force in New York state, and among the largest in the country, to be granted special powers to crack down on illegal immigration.
Blakeman finds it “bizarre” that other local governments and police forces would refuse to do so.
The program will help break up migrant gangs and theft rings that have terrorized Long Island neighborhoods.
