Four Detainees Escape Newark ICE Center After Breaching Wall

Authorities are searching for four detainees who escaped from a federal immigration detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, after breaking through a wall late Thursday. The daring escape has prompted heightened security measures and an urgent manhunt.

According to U.S. Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ), the inmates tore through an interior wall inside the Delaney Hall Detention Facility, before breaching the external perimeter and reaching the facility’s parking lot. The senator, who visited the site Friday, described the incident as “deeply alarming” and said it underscored “severe security lapses.”

A statement from a senior official at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed that additional law enforcement agencies have been mobilized to assist in the search, but declined to identify which ones are involved.

Who Escaped?

The four escapees were being held for various criminal offenses and immigration violations. DHS identified them as:

• Two Colombian nationals, both previously arrested for burglary and related crimes.

• Two Honduran nationals:

  • Franklin Norberto Bautista-Reyes

  • Joel Enrique Sandoval-Lopez

Both Bautista-Reyes and Sandoval-Lopez face charges including aggravated assault. Court records did not list legal representation for either Honduran man as of Friday evening.

Chaos Inside Facility

Sources suggest the escape followed a period of intense unrest inside the facility. Senator Kim stated that chaos broke out before the breach, though it remains unclear what triggered the disorder. An internal review is underway to determine how the escapees managed to compromise the building’s structural barriers without immediate interception.

National Context

The breakout comes at a volatile moment in U.S. politics. President Donald Trump has ramped up rhetoric and enforcement on illegal immigration, with new executive actions and proposed policies drawing both support and backlash.

The incident also occurs just one day before coordinated protests are planned nationwide against Trump’s immigration policies, potentially adding more fuel to an already heated debate.

What’s Next?

Officials are urging the public to remain alert and to report any sightings of the escaped detainees. Law enforcement agencies are expected to expand the search area if the four men are not found in the coming hours.

Security protocols at the Delaney Hall facility are also under review, and DHS has not ruled out disciplinary action or structural changes in the aftermath of the escape.

More updates will follow as the search continues.