Rumor Of ICE Agents In Millburn Park Not True, Mayor Says

MILLBURN, NJ — A rumor that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were spotted at Gero Park in Millburn on Monday is false, officials say.

Tensions and anxieties are high in Essex County after ICE agents carried out a surprise raid at a seafood distributor in Newark last Thursday. Three undocumented residents were arrested and several others were detained during the “warrantless” raid, including a U.S. military veteran. See Related: ICE Immigration Raid Shocks New Jersey (5 Things To Know)

Rumors of other ICE sightings in Essex County have been making the rounds on social media in the wake of the Newark raid. One of them involved an ICE vehicle at a local park in Millburn – and it’s not true, the town’s mayor says.

Millburn Mayor Annette Romano said that someone apparently mistook a police car for a federal vehicle, leading to the misunderstanding.

“There have been rumors running rampant on social media that ‘ICE agents’ were at Gero Park this morning while the [New Jersey] Division of Motor Vehicle Mobile Unit was there,” Romano told Patch.

“This was not the case at all,” she added.

Here’s what happened, according to Romano:

“A Millburn Township police car was mistakenly identified as ‘ICE vehicle.’ A door panel on one of our patrol cars was recently replaced and the stripping had not been completed. The letters P, O, and L were missing. This individual assumed it was an ICE vehicle. As I have stated on numerous occasions, we must express caution with what we post and read on social media.”

“Just because something is on the internet it doesn’t mean it’s factual,” Romano added.

While the rumor of ICE in Millburn isn’t true, other New Jersey towns and cities have confirmed that federal immigration agents recently carried out operations within their borders, including Asbury Park, Neptune and Paterson.

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