ICE acting director Todd Lyons will resign at end of May, DHS says

WASHINGTON (AP) — Acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons, a key enforcer of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda, will resign at the end of May, federal officials announced Thursday.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullen called Lyons a great leader for ICE who has helped make American communities safer.

“We wish him well in his next opportunity in the private sector,” Mullen said in a statement.

The Lions’ last day will be May 31, according to Mullen.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson described Lyons in a post on X’s website as “an American patriot who made our country safer.”

It was not immediately clear why Lyons resigned or who would replace him.

Lyons, who joined ICE in 2007 as an immigration enforcement agent in Texas, led the agency in upending Trump’s plans to reshape U.S. immigration.

Under his leadership, the agency was granted a massive infusion of funds through Congress, which it used to expand recruitment and detention capabilities. Immigration and Customs Enforcement under Leon’s leadership also stepped up arrests to meet the administration’s request. He signed a memorandum, first obtained by The Associated Press, that gave federal immigration officers broad powers to forcefully enter homes and make arrests without a warrant.

ICE was also central to a series of high-profile immigration enforcement operations in US cities, including Chicago and Minneapolis, a deployment that ended after violent reactions erupted over the killing of two US protesters.

Public perceptions of ICE under Leon were low. In a February AP-NORC poll, most American adults, including independents, said they had an unfavorable view of the agency.

Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, described Lyons as serving selflessly and as an “effective and highly respected director of ICE.”