Rumors have been circulating on social media that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, agents have detained tribal citizens in Juneau, but local officials say that is not true.
City and Borough of Juneau Mayor Beth Weldon says some of the speculation is due to a miscommunication.
“We as a collective, we – including the chief of police and the city attorney – we have not heard of anybody being detained or even questioned about their immigration status, for that matter, not to say that won’t change, but that’s what we know right now,” Weldon said.
She said the city doesnʼt have information about ICE agents in town or anyone being detained by them.
Juneau Police Department Deputy Chief Krag Campbell said in an email that the department has received calls asking about ICE presence in Juneau, but they havenʼt received any reports of Juneau residents being detained.
He said federal agencies not stationed in Juneau will usually notify the department when they are in Juneau. He asked residents to inform JPD if they encounter ICE officers in town.
Campbell says that U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents are in town for drug enforcement support. That agency is separate from ICE, though both are under the Department of Homeland Security.
These agents could have been mistaken for ICE officers.
The Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska President Chalyee Éesh Richard Peterson issued a statement saying that there is no substantiated evidence that tribal citizens have been detained in Juneau.
Nevertheless, Peterson encouraged tribal members to make sure their tribal IDs have not expired and to carry them when out in public.
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