Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested an individual in the Tuxedo Park neighborhood near Seton Hall last week, prompting concerns among students about safety on and around campus. The arrest came amid reports of increased ICE activity across Essex County, leaving some students worried about the security of their peers.
ICE officers took a man into custody on South Kingman Road in South Orange between 2 and 2:30 p.m. on Oct. 1, according to South Orange Mayor Sheena Collum.
Local officials obtained the man’s vehicle registration and identified him as a Paterson resident. According to Collum, the ICE field office confirmed the arrest but provided no further details.
In a statement, Collum said she is working with Paterson Mayor André Sayegh to connect the detained individual with local support services, including SOMA Community Cares (SCC), which provides financial assistance to people affected by immigration enforcement and detention.
SCC Representatives Matt Bloom and Cynthia Galeota were notified of the arrest and “immediately put money into his commissary account to help with phone calls and other immediate needs while he is being detained,” Collum said.
Collum is also working with the Detention and Deportation Defense Initiative (DDDI), which provides free legal counsel and representation to income-eligible residents at risk of or facing deportation. Rachel Salazar, an attorney with DDDI, was scheduled to evaluate the individual’s eligibility for habeas corpus petition on Oct. 11.
Students React to Local ICE Activity
For some SHU students, the arrest’s proximity to campus made concerns about immigration enforcement more immediate. Students said the reported activity contributed to uncertainty about safety in South Orange, particularly for international students and others who may be affected by immigration enforcement.
Maria Alters, a junior biology major, said students should be able to pursue their education in a safe environment without fearing ICE activity.
“People are simply trying to get an education here, and having that experience jeopardized or having people feel unsafe in a place meant for learning is really disappointing and disturbing,” Alters said.
Similarly, Alexa Haidacher, a senior English and philosophy major, said the arrests have made her more concerned about the safety of students at SHU, especially those from other countries.
“That's really scary…I think a lot of the fad around the ICE raids is kind of diminishing,” Haidacher said. “It's an issue that is still clearly very relevant, and that makes me nervous for the safety of a lot of our international students here.”
Pavneet Kaur, a senior political science major, shared those concerns, saying she has friends who transferred to SHU from other countries who have expressed fear about increased ICE activity.
“I have friends that are foreign transfer students, and I know they're terrified because even if they have all the legal documents and everything, they're still at risk of being abducted,” Kaur said.
For Blessy Phillip, a senior health science major, learning that an arrest had occurred so close to campus changed her perspective.
“There's always something different seeing it online and then seeing that it was five minutes from where I live,” Phillip said. “It definitely made me really reflect differently and really want to educate myself a little bit more.”
Beyond immediate concerns about campus safety, students also questioned the Trump administration’s approach to immigration enforcement and its implications for American values and democracy.
Phillip said the increase in ICE activity is upsetting because she believes it conflicts with traditional American values centered on freedom.
“It's really just honestly disappointing and just upsetting that this is the America I'm walking into,” Phillip said. “They have to figure out how to make ICE, at the bare minimum, more humane in how they treat people.”
Phillip added that she believes increased ICE activity has slowed democratic progress, which she had hoped would advance significantly by 2026.
“It's crazy to think that in 2026, when we would hope that we would be making progress towards improving how we are with immigration, this continues to happen,” Phillip said.
Kaur also criticized the Trump administration’s “Secure the Border” campaign, arguing that its approach to immigration is not focused on reducing crime. She cited advertising that she believes targets specific racial groups.
“It's not even like [Trump is] he's trying to reduce crime,” Kaur said. “He's just trying to reduce people, and he’s targeting a specific demographic of people, which only makes it that much worse.”
Prachet Trivedi, a sophomore diplomacy and international relations major, also questioned how immigration enforcement is being carried out. He said he believes agents’ conduct and advertising have contributed to feelings of insecurity among citizens and immigrants alike.
“ICE’s duties can definitely be carried out in a way that is safer for all,” Trivedi said. “However, that is not what’s being showcased right now.”
Trivedi, who previously worked as an EMT, recalled encountering a minor who was living in the country without legal immigration status. The experience led him to question whether children in similar circumstances should be detained.
“That kid is not a threat to anyone’s safety, and people like him don’t need to be shoved into shelters …and treated as subhuman,” Trivedi said.
He added that he believes the administration’s immigration policies have affected how communities understand safety in the United States.
“Detaining citizens due to racial profiling, not following appropriate guidelines, and just acting recklessly overall makes it less safe,” Trivedi said.
For some students, concerns about immigration enforcement extend beyond campus and public policy. Knowing people who are navigating the immigration system has made the issue more personal.
Avery Treff, a sophomore business major, said knowing people pursuing permanent residency or citizenship have made reports of ICE arrests more difficult to hear.
“It doesn't directly affect me, but I know so many people who are working to get their green card and citizenship here,” Treff said. “So thinking about that happening to somebody that you know personally…it hurts.”
Treff also criticized the Trump administration’s third-country removal policy, which allows some people facing deportation to be sent to countries other than their own. Treff said the policy is unfair to people who had risked their lives to seek opportunities in the United States.
“Some people risk their lives to come here, just to get put somewhere where they don't know anything about,” Treff said.
ICE Activity in Essex County
The Oct. 1 arrest was not the first reported ICE arrest in the South Orange and Maplewood area. According to Patch, ICE arrested four people in the area in August, including two roofers, a handyman and the sous chef of a local restaurant. Reports of ICE activity have also emerged elsewhere in Essex County in recent months.
In August and September, Montclair saw several reported ICE detentions. Reports said ICE detained four people on Elm Street and two on Church Street.
ICE also detained an individual near Bloomfield Elementary School, prompting a shelter-in-place, according to Patch.
Beyond the arrests, the ICE detention center at Delaney Hall in Newark has sparked lawsuits and growing concerns from Democratic party leaders over alleged inhumane conditions. The increased activity is a result of the Trump administration’s “Secure the Border” campaign, which prioritizes immigration enforcement and deportation. According to CNN, ICE leadership ordered agents nationwide to increase their daily arrest count by 1,000 people per day on Oct. 8.
ICE Legislation in Essex County
As reports of ICE activity have spread across Essex County, local municipalities have taken steps to establish limits on cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
South Orange adopted a resolution in 2017 limiting municipal cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. The resolution states that municipal employees cannot “enforce federal immigration law, nor help facilitate ICE deportations, except where legally required to do so.”
Maplewood Township also adopted policies in July 2026 under the Maplewood Immigrant Trust Act, which restricts local cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
Grace Tylee is the head editor of The Setonian’s Social Media. She can be reached at grace.tylee@student.shu.edu.
