As ICE continues to make headlines, many people are growing more and more fearful with the constant barrage of news stories about ICE’s movements. One such incident occurred in New Jersey, when ICE detained a man despite his repeated requests for them to check his ID.
The incident took place on July 13, 2026, in Passaic, New Jersey. While the clip does not show what happened prior to the arrest, the video does include the man repeatedly asking ICE to check his ID – which they decline to do. Another noteworthy element of the video is the fact that there were multiple ICE agents present to detain the one man who was, presumably, unarmed.
The now-viral clip has sparked fear in internet users. One person commented, “These are Nazis. Plain and simple.” Another echoed that sentiment with, “They’re such cowards they’ll say they were ‘just following orders’ when they finally face their day in court.” The negative commentary about ICE employees continued unanomiously, without a single comment in their defense.
Others were less focused on the agents themselves, and felt it was more important to look into ICE’s process of detaining people as a whole. One person wrote, “We’re blowing right past the ‘show us your papers’ part and skipping to the ’round up the different lookers.’” Another asserted, “Surrounded and pushed around by five men: ‘Why is he resisting?’ They’re literally trying to make it look like he’s resisting while trying to break his arm.“
Many expressed fear of encountering ICE while going about their daily routines. Many people believe the clip to be evidence that one’s immigration status has no bearing on whether or not they will be detained. As one person put it, “So it has nothing to do with legally being here.” Another responded with, “It’s gonna blow your mind when you find out it never has been.“
As for the policies in question, apparently, ICE can detain someone without checking their ID first. That said, according to the NAACP, if they arrest a U.S. citizen, that person would then have grounds for a federal lawsuit. As of the time of writing, it is unclear what this particular New Jersey man’s status was in that regard.
So far, ICE has not released any information about this particular arrest. Their silence around the issue has only heightened New Jersey residents’ fears about ICE’s presence in the state.
