In office since 2025 Director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement steps down
Todd Lyons, acting director of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), resigns at the end of May. Under his leadership, 475,000 people were deported from the USA - his tenure was marked by controversial raids and the death of two protesters in Minneapolis.
17.04.2026, 07:28
17.04.2026, 07:57
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- Todd Lyons, acting director of the US immigration authority ICE, is resigning as of May 31, 2026 - official reasons were not given.
- Under his leadership, over 475,000 people were deported from the USA in the first year of the Trump administration.
- Lyon's time in office was characterized by controversial raids and the death of two protesters in Minneapolis, which ultimately led to the dismissal of his supervisor Kristi Noem.
The acting director of the controversial US immigration authority ICE, Todd Lyons, will resign at the end of May. This was announced by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Platform X. Lyons has played a key role in helping US President Donald Trump's administration "remove murderers, rapists, pedophiles, terrorists and gang members from American communities," Mullin continued. "Thanks to his leadership, American communities are safer today." Reasons for Lyon's resignation were not initially given.
Trump had appointed him to his post in March 2025. Lyons had previously worked at ICE for 20 years. The US president uses the immigration authority to push through his controversial plans for the mass deportation of migrants. The agency has been in the spotlight due to controversial raids in US cities such as Chicago and Minneapolis, in which masked federal officials also took action against migrants.
Following the death of two US demonstrators by gunfire from US federal officers in Minneapolis and violent protests, the ICE operation was called off. The Department of Homeland Security, with then Secretary Kristi Noem, also made the headlines with increasing frequency as a result. Noem was finally dismissed by Trump at the beginning of March. Her successor, Mullin, has only been in office for just under a month. He has to calm the heated situation.
Mullin praised Lyons as an "outstanding leader at ICE". He went on to write: "We wish him every success in his new job in the private sector. His last day of work is May 31, 2026."
Lyons: 475,000 people deported from the USA
According to Fox News, Lyons sent Mullin a letter of resignation on Thursday (local time). He wanted to spend more time with his family, the station reported, citing a source.
White House deputy spokeswoman Abigail Jackson praised Lyons as an American patriot "who has made our country safer. The American people are deeply grateful for his service."
During the presidential election campaign, Trump had promised large-scale deportations of people without legal residency status. At a congressional hearing in February, Lyons said, according to media reports, that ICE had made 379,000 arrests and deported more than 475,000 people from the US in the first year of the Trump administration.
