The FBI is calling on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to identify themselves when conducting their enforcement actions due to a rise in impersonations.
Criminals have been masquerading as ICE agents to commit multiple types of crimes, which prompted the FBI’s request, according to The Hill.
The FBI is urging partner agencies to “adequately identify themselves” amid a string of cases in which those impersonating U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers committed crimes, such as kidnapping and assault.
“Due to the recent increase in ICE enforcement actions across the country, criminal actors are using ICE’s enhanced public profile and media coverage to their advantage to target vulnerable communities and commit criminal activity. This not only effects the victims and communities but also has broader negative consequences on law enforcement agencies,” the FBI wrote in a bulletin.
“These criminal impersonations make it difficult for the community to distinguish between legitimate officers conducting lawful law enforcement action and imposters engaging in criminal activity, which damages trust between the local community and law enforcement officers.”
There have been several reports documenting incidents in which violent criminals pose as ICE agents to fool their victims into lowering their guard.
From Wired:
Criminals posing as US immigration officers have carried out robberies, kidnappings, and sexual assaults in several states, warns a law enforcement bulletin issued last month by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The bureau urges agencies to ensure officers clearly identify themselves and to cooperate when civilians ask to verify an officer’s identity—including by allowing calls to a local police precinct. “Ensure law enforcement personnel adequality [sic] identify themselves during operations and cooperate with individuals who request further verification,” it says.
First reported by WIRED, the bulletin cites five 2025 incidents involving fake immigration officers and says criminals are using Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s heightened profile to target vulnerable communities, making it harder for Americans to distinguish between lawful officers and imposters while eroding trust in law enforcement. A review of public reporting confirms four of the five cases described in the bulletin. One appears to have gone unreported, suggesting the FBI drew in part on internal law enforcement information. The document was first obtained by the transparency nonprofit Property of the People.
On August 7, according to the FBI, three men in black vests entered a New York restaurant claiming to be ICE agents. Inside, they tied a worker’s hands and pulled a garbage bag over the person’s head. Another, believing the burglars’ story, surrendered themselves, only to be kicked to the ground and tied up as the intruders robbed an ATM.
Federal rules require immigration officers to identify themselves and state the reason for an arrest “as soon as it is practical and safe to do so.” The standard has not changed since it was codified, yet advocates say it is increasingly ignored.https://t.co/b6IHaGZlii
— WIRED (@WIRED) November 4, 2025
CNN reported a sharp rise in these types of incidents in 2025. Criminal elements have exploited the confusion created by ICE’s use of masks and plain clothes. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner noted that despite being in law enforcement for almost four decades, he has “never seen cases involving the impersonation of ICE agents” before Trump started his second term.
The White House argues that it is necessary for ICE agents to conceal their identities due to increased threats to its agents. There have been multiple instances in which anti-ICE protesters have assaulted ICE and Border Patrol agents as they carry out the White House’s mass deportation agenda.
Back in September, an individual opened fire at a Dallas ICE facility in an attempt to kill ICE agents. The suspect killed an illegal immigrant and injured several others before taking his own life.
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