Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin says New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani spent a two-hour phone call with President Trump on Thursday night pressing for the immediate release of a man shot by ICE agents, despite the suspect’s record of arrests over the past three years.
The call, which also included New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, followed an ICE-involved shooting Thursday of a man federal officials describe as a criminal illegal alien. Hours after the shooting, before an investigation had produced full details, Mamdani publicly called ICE “rotten to its core” and called for the agency to be abolished.
Mullin, describing the call afterward, said Hochul was “somewhat respectful and reasonable” while Mamdani was “cordial, but unrealistic.”
“The fact that they wanted to release this individual back on the streets is absurd,” Mullin said.
Mullin said Trump was “cordial and nice” during the call, praised the NYPD as “the finest,” and offered to turn the suspect over to NYPD custody. But he said Mamdani’s push for the man’s outright release was untenable given the suspect’s criminal history.
“Let me explain what he’s on probation for, four robbery charges, two charges of felony assault, felony larceny, assault, weapons assault, weapons possession of misdemeanor larceny, possession of stolen property, and two felony charges of dangerous drugs — all in 3 years, and that’s all that’s how long he’s been in the country,” Mullin said.
Mullin also said the man shot by ICE has ties to a violent gang.
The shooting has drawn fresh attention to Mamdani’s handling of crime involving illegal immigrants in New York City. Days earlier, NYPD Detective Jose Mercedes was stabbed in the Bronx in what police say was an attempted robbery by two illegal aliens. Mamdani visited Mercedes in the hospital after the attack, but he has not issued a public statement on that case comparable to his response to Thursday’s shooting.
Neither Mamdani’s office nor Hochul’s office has publicly disputed Mullin’s account of the call as of this writing.
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