US DHS dismisses New York Times report on detainee abuse as 'garbage'

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has dismissed as “garbage” a New York Times report alleging torture and abuse of detained deportees, accusing the newspaper of spreading false claims about federal immigration enforcement.

In a report published on Sunday, the Times said it interviewed ten people deported from the US to Liberia and Equatorial Guinea, several of whom said they had no ties to the African countries. They alleged physical abuse, harsh restraints and degrading treatment while in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

In comments provided to the newspaper before publication, DHS disputed several of the allegations, saying detainees receive comprehensive medical care and rejecting claims that migrants were denied bathroom access or abused during deportation flights.

Following publication, the department went further, dismissing the report as another “hoax” and describing it as “garbage.”

“NO ONE is being tortured, denied medical care, or beaten in ICE detention facilities,” DHS said on X, adding that “the media is clearly desperate for these false allegations to be true.”

The department also accused such coverage of fueling hostility toward immigration officers. It said assaults on ICE personnel increased by more than 1,300% between 2024 and 2025, while death threats against officers and their families surged by 8,000%.

ICE has faced mounting scrutiny during US President Donald Trump’s second term as his administration has expanded arrests and deportations as part of what it has billed as the largest immigration crackdown in US history.

The campaign has triggered nationwide protests and legal challenges, with detainees and advocacy groups accusing ICE of excessive force, poor detention conditions, and inadequate medical care.

At least 52 people died in ICE custody during the first 500 days of Trump’s second term, according to a June report by Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights.

DHS has denied that abuses are systemic and has repeatedly accused politicians and media outlets of demonizing immigration enforcement, including by comparing ICE agents to historical secret police and other authoritarian organizations.