On a September morning, masked immigration agents rolled into Dover, New Jersey, sparking social media footage that sent residents into hiding and revived rumors about a nearby warehouse in Roxbury being used for detention. The site was originally part of a billion-dollar Department of Homeland Security plan to convert warehouses into migrant detention facilities under President Trump’s mass deportation strategy. Although that plan faced fierce backlash and court orders legally forbidding conversion pending environmental reviews, an investigation indicates the New Jersey facility has been actively utilized. Earlier in the year, Homeland Security acquired 11 warehouses. A government contractor reported that high-ranking officials pushed to make the environment uncomfortably harsh, a claim denied by White House spokesperson Lauren Bis as false hearsay. Amid high arrest numbers over the summer, neighbors and local officials observed suspicious vehicle caravans traveling toward the Roxbury property. Councilmember Sandra Wittner and community groups like Project NINJA noted reports of detainees being held temporarily at the warehouse before transfer or deportation. A deported individual confirmed being taken to the Roxbury location and held in handcuffs before being moved. While DHS did not respond regarding whether it held people at the site, legal experts suggest the administration may be navigating around existing court orders by utilizing the space without formally completing the conversion.
Source: npr.org
