ICE Facility Protests Escalate as Watchdog Flags IRS Data-Sharing Risks

Protests outside the Delaney Hall ICE detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, escalated over the weekend as six more individuals were arrested on rioting charges, while federal officials revealed that facial recognition technology has linked agitators to organized protest groups from Portland, Oregon, and Minnesota. Simultaneously, a Treasury Inspector General report released Monday flagged significant security risks in the controversial IRS-ICE taxpayer data-sharing agreement, raising fresh concerns about privacy and accuracy in immigration enforcement.

Delaney Hall: A Growing Flashpoint

The confrontations at Delaney Hall, a 1,000-bed immigration detention facility operated by the GEO Group under a 15-year, $1 billion federal contract, have been intensifying since early May. What began as peaceful demonstrations escalated into a hunger and labor strike by detainees on May 22, with over 300 participants initially — a number that has since dropped to approximately 200, according to advocacy group Eyes on ICE New Jersey.

According to Fox News, six people were arrested between Saturday night and Sunday morning on charges of rioting and failure to disperse after obstructing vehicle access to the facility. Those arrested include Allison Wuu, 19, of Fort Collins, Colorado; Lucas Jimenez, 18, of Hoboken, New Jersey; Drew Larsen, 28, of Brooklyn, New York; Solomon Dunston, 30, of Bordentown, New Jersey; Rayaan Baywa, 22, of Riverside, Connecticut; and Julianna Wurst, 19, of Old Bridge, New Jersey. Approximately 90 arrests have been made since the protests began.

Newark Public Safety Director Emanuel Miranda stated that the arrests were made after suspects were observed committing property damage and blocking the facility entrance. “No one has the right to come into our city, destroy personal property, or incite violence,” Miranda said. “Think twice before coming to Newark with any other agenda than to protest peacefully.”

Facial Recognition and Out-of-State Connections

Border Czar Tom Homan told “FOX & Friends” on Monday that facial recognition technology has linked agitators at Delaney Hall to groups from Portland, Oregon, and Minnesota, describing them as “paid protesters.”

“Look, these are paid protesters. We’ve got facial recognition of people from Portland, they’re at Portland riots, and many from Minnesota,” Homan said. “This is a well-planned, established thing they’re doing. This isn’t homegrown. There’s a lot of local people there to protest peacefully, and they certainly can do that. But the violence, majority of violence, not all of it, the majority is coming from out of town people.”

Independent journalists on the ground, however, have offered a different perspective. Kevin Ortega-Rojas, an independent journalist covering the protests, told The Jersey Vindicator that the demonstrations had been peaceful until ICE agents began using confrontational tactics. “They use that as an opportunity to use excessive force, pepper spray, and rubber bullets,” he said. Video footage has shown agents pushing a protester into the path of an 18-wheeler truck.

Disputed Hunger Strike and Facility Conditions

The existence of the hunger strike itself has become a point of contention. DHS acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis denied there was a hunger strike, calling it “a political stunt by New Jersey sanctuary politicians for fundraising clicks.” DHS officials have pointed to data showing detainee snack purchases spiking during the alleged fasting period. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin remarked, “The fact is, we’re giving them the calories they want. This isn’t Holiday Inn.”

However, Sen. Andy Kim and Rep. Rob Menendez, who inspected the facility, described filthy bathrooms, backed-up toilets, inadequate medical care, and abusive guard behavior. Kim was struck by pepper ball spray during one confrontation while attempting to de-escalate tensions. “What I’m complaining about are these detainees and their families talking about the inhumane treatment they are going through on our soil, using taxpayer dollars that’s now funded toward GEO Group,” Kim said.

New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill has deployed New Jersey State Police to manage the perimeter in an effort to “lower the temperature,” while Newark Mayor Ras Baraka imposed an indefinite 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew outside the facility.

Treasury Watchdog Flags IRS-ICE Data-Sharing Risks

In a separate but interconnected development, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) released a report Monday flagging security risks in the 2025 data-sharing agreement between the IRS and ICE. The Associated Press reports that the watchdog found that inconsistent formatting in ICE’s data and the IRS’s matching criteria led to errors, including questionable matches with incomplete or inaccurate addresses labeled as valid.

According to the report, ICE requested address information on more than 1.2 million people, and the IRS ultimately provided last-known addresses for approximately 47,000 individuals. The deal led the then-acting commissioner of the IRS to resign.

This is not the first legal setback for the data-sharing arrangement. In February 2026, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled that the IRS broke the law by disclosing confidential taxpayer information to ICE. The controversy has been further fueled by a ProPublica investigation revealing that the IRS is building a computer system for “on demand” data sharing with ICE, which could give deportation officers unprecedented access to confidential tax data.

The report also highlighted the role of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which pushed the IRS to provide taxpayer data to immigration agents. A senior DOGE official, Sam Corcos, pushed out more than 50 IRS engineers. Acting IRS General Counsel Andrew De Mello refused to turn over addresses of 7.3 million taxpayers sought by ICE, citing legal deficiencies, and was forced out of his job two days later.

Analysis: Competing Narratives and Broader Implications

The Delaney Hall protests and the IRS-ICE data-sharing controversy, while distinct, both underscore the intensifying immigration enforcement under the Trump administration. The administration’s narrative frames the protests as the work of out-of-state “paid protesters” engaged in criminal activity, while activists and detainees describe a response to inhumane conditions and excessive force.

On the data-sharing front, the TIGTA report confirms what critics have long alleged: the system is prone to errors that could lead to wrongful targeting. As one IRS engineer told ProPublica, “If this program is implemented in its current form, it’s extremely likely that incorrect addresses will be given to DHS and individuals will be wrongly targeted.”

What to Watch For

The TIGTA report made no formal recommendations but plans to share concerns with the DHS Office of Inspector General. Multiple lawsuits challenging the IRS-ICE data-sharing agreement remain pending. Meanwhile, the situation at Delaney Hall remains volatile, with the hunger strike continuing and state police now managing the perimeter. The coming weeks will determine whether the deployment of state police de-escalates tensions or whether the protests — and the legal battles over data privacy — continue to intensify.