NEWARK (1010 WINS) -- Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested Friday at a new federal immigration detention center he has been protesting against and was held in custody for several hours.
Baraka was released shortly after 8 p.m. and, after stepping out of an SUV with flashing emergency lights, told waiting supporters: “The reality is this: I didn't do anything wrong.”
The mayor said he could not speak about his case, citing a promise he made to lawyers and the judge. But he voiced full-throated support for everyone living in his community, immigrants included. “All of us here, every last one of us, I don’t care what background you come from, what nationality, what language you speak,” Baraka said, “at some point we have to stop these people from causing division between us.”
The acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey, Alina Habba, wrote on X that Baraka had “committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings from Homeland Security Investigations to remove himself” from the Delaney Hall detention center Friday afternoon. The detention facility is run by private prison operator GEO Group.
“He has willingly chosen to disregard the law,” Habba wrote. “That will not stand in this state. He has been taken into custody. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW.”
Baraka, who is running for governor, has been protesting the opening of the facility throughout this week, saying its operators did not get proper permits.
Witnesses said the arrest came after Baraka attempted to join three members of New Jersey’s congressional delegation, Reps. Robert Menendez, LaMonica McIver, and Bonnie Watson Coleman, in attempting to enter the facility.
When federal officials blocked his entry, a heated argument broke out, according to Viri Martinez, an activist with the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice. It continued even after Baraka returned to the public side of the gates.
“There was yelling and pushing,” Martinez said. “Then the officers swarmed Baraka. They threw one of the organizers to the ground. They put Baraka in handcuffs and put him in an unmarked car.”
In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security said the lawmakers had not asked for a tour of the facility. The department said further that as a bus carrying detainees was entering, “a group of protestors, including two members of the U.S. House of Representatives, stormed the gate and broke into the detention facility.”
Homeland Security did not respond to questions about why only the mayor was arrested.
Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin was quoted in the statement as calling it “beyond a bizarre political stunt” and saying it put agents' and detainees' safety at risk.
“Members of Congress are not above the law and cannot illegally break into detention facilities. Had these members requested a tour, we would have facilitated a tour of the facility,” McLaughlin said.
Watson Coleman, who left and was at a Homeland Security Investigations holding facility where Baraka was said to have been taken, said the DHS statement inaccurately characterized the visit.
“Contrary to a press statement put out by DHS we did not ‘storm’ the detention center,” she wrote. “The author of that press release was so unfamiliar with the facts on the ground that they didn’t even correctly count the number of Representatives present. We were exercising our legal oversight function as we have done at the Elizabeth Detention Center without incident.”
In video of the altercation shared with The Associated Press, a federal official in a jacket with the logo of the Homeland Security Investigations can be heard telling Baraka he could not join a tour of the facility because “you are not a congress member.”
Baraka then left the secure area, rejoining protesters on the public side of the gate. Video showed him speaking through the gate to a man in a suit, who said: “They’re talking about coming back to arrest you.”
“I’m not on their property. They can’t come out on the street and arrest me,” Baraka replied.
Minutes later several ICE agents, some wearing face coverings, surrounded him and others on the public side. As protesters cried out, “Shame,” Baraka was dragged back through the security gate in handcuffs.
“The ICE personnel came out aggressively to arrest him and grab him,” said Julie Moreno, a New Jersey state captain of American Families United. “It didn’t make any sense why they chose that moment to grab him while he was outside the gates.”
Witnesses and immigration activists gathered at an ICE federal building about 15 minutes down the road from the Delaney Hall detention center after Baraka's arrest.
In a statement saying he was "outraged by the unjust arrest" arrest, Gov. Phil Murphy acknowledged a law he signed four years ago that bans private immigration detention centers in New Jersey, and said that his administration was defending said law before the Third Circuit Court of Appeals just last week.
"Over the past few months, Mayor Baraka, as well as advocates, faith leaders, and members of our Congressional delegation, have protested the opening of a private immigration detention center in the city of Newark," Murphy said. "Mayor Baraka is an exemplary public servant who has always stood up for our most vulnerable neighbors. I am calling for his immediate release by federal law enforcement."
Baraka and immigrant rights groups have joined forces to oppose the 1,000-bed facility along an industrial stretch of Newark Bay, which opened May 1.
The mayor has aggressively pushed back against the construction and opening of the center, arguing that it should not be allowed to open because of building permit issues. Homeland Security said the facility has the proper permits and inspections have been cleared.
Baraka sued GEO Group soon after the deal between the company and ICE was announced. The case got transferred from state to federal court, where a judge is considering the city’s request to temporarily block the opening.
Geo touted the contract with Delaney Hall during its earnings call with shareholders Wednesday, with CEO David Donahue saying it was expected to generate more than $60 million a year in revenue.
Donahue said the activation of the facility and another in Michigan would increase total capacity under contract with ICE from around 20,000 beds to around 23,000.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.