NYC Mayor Mamdani ‘Outraged’ After City Staffer With Work Permit Detained By ICE, Calls For His ‘Immediate Release’

AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani was outraged Monday after a city council staffer was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, posting a statement calling for his “immediate release.”

According to Politico political reporter Emily Ngo, the employee is of Venezuelan descent, had “legal work authorization,” and was working for the city as a data analyst.

City Council Speaker Julie Menin told Ngo that the employee was detained during a scheduled immigration appointment on Long Island, but when he arrived at this “routine court appearance…quickly went awry,” and he was detained and moved to an immigration detention center.

“We are doing everything we can to secure his immediate release, and we demand swift and transparent action by the federal government on this apparent overreach,” said Menin, who did not disclose his name to protect his identity.

“DHS confirmed that this employee had gone in for a routine court appointment and was nevertheless detained,” Menin added. “They provided no other basis for his detainment.”

Mamdani responded quickly to the news, posting a statement on his social media.

“I am outraged to hear a New York City Council employee was detained in Nassau County by federal immigration officials at a routine immigration appointment,” wrote Mamdani. “This is an assault on our democracy, on our city, and our values. I am calling for his immediate release and will continue to monitor the situation.”

Ngo added that the New York Legal Assistance Group was filing a habeas corpus petition challenging the council employee’s detention, according to a spokesperson.

The New York Post reported that the council staffer has a work visa that is valid until October, and is currently being held at a detention center in Lower Manhattan. Menin said that she had been unable to speak to the employee when she called the detention center. City staffers found out the employee had been detained when he “used his one call after detainment to call the Council’s human resources department,” the Post reported.

New York Attorney General Letitia James echoed Mamdani’s call for the city staffer to be “released immediately,” and noted that she had spoken with Menin to “express my support for her staff.”

“We will not stand for attacks on our city, its public servants, and its residents,” James added.