U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is reopening the 1,000-bed detention center at Delaney Hall in Newark after reaching an agreement with the owner to reestablish the federal immigration processing facility, the government said Wednesday.
The detention center is six times the size of the state's only other detention center, which is in Elizabeth. No specific date was declared but ICE described the reopening as imminent.
ICE says the facility will expand its detention capacity in the Northeast, enhancing the agency’s ability to manage the region’s growing enforcement and removal operations in concert with President Donald Trump's crackdown.
"This detention center is the first to open under the new administration," acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello said in a statement. "The location near an international airport streamlines logistics, and helps facilitate the timely processing of individuals in our custody as we pursue President Trump’s mandate to arrest, detain and remove illegal aliens from our communities.”
While the administration vowed to prioritize the “worst first” when it comes to arrests and deportations, the number of detainees in ICE custody without a criminal conviction or pending criminal charges increased by more than 1,800 in the first two weeks of February, representing 41% of the 4,422 total new detainees in that period, according to data obtained by NBC News.
