Saturday morning in Beacon marked the last Soccer Saturday of the season as parents rose early to get ready for Championship Day. Dark vehicles with tinted windows suspected of being U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were parked in a line up North Elm and Wilkes Streets, with possible sightings at Orchard Place, the loop that is the base of East and West Willow Streets known as “The Willows.”

After the first Beacon resident was taken by ICE early Friday morning from their home on North Elm Street, residents in Beacon convened in an emergency meeting Friday night to share resources and connect phones to begin a Neighborhood Watch for ICE spottings in an attempt to distract and delay.

A Little Beacon Blog had just published the first article describing what was known so far about the previous ICE sting operation on North Elm, when a reader commented in ALBB’s Instagram that ICE was possibly at intersection of North Elm and Wilkes again for another hit.

Alex Berke, a local mom and employment lawyer who provides counsel on sexual harassment and discrimination cases, had been alerted via the Neighborhood Watch group, and biked over to seek verification by cautiously approaching one of the vehicles to inquire as to their purpose. “It doesn’t feel as hard for me to do this because I’m white and very comfortable speaking to authority figures,” Alex told ALBB.

When she approached the car, she gave a friendly greeting. “Hi…” she said. When she got no response, she tipped her bike helmet in head-nod to get his attention, and motioned for him to roll down his window.

“We all need to be sand in the gears right now. If you’re comfortable approaching, it’s time to do so. Those who have privilege can use it in these moments.”

— Alex Berke, local Beacon resident and attorney.

“Can I help you, ma’am?” the driver asked. Another Beacon resident rolled up as well to join Alex in the interview. The driver was a white male, bald, wore a dark short-sleeved shirt and had a thick beige vest on with a yellow POLICE patch on the front, similar to what has been the costume in other ICE abduction videos. His New York license plate read LDY-3445.

“Yeah,” she continued. “I’m just a Beacon local, and we are trying to understand where you are from and what’s going on.”

“Um, we have something going on in the area,” he answered. “Immigration and Customs Enforcement, better known as ICE, if you’re wondering that. We have police activity going on in the area, so I’m letting you know that we are here.”

The second Beacon resident asked for clarification on which police were in the area. She asked: “Are you saying that local police are involved?”

“No,” he answered immediately. “Local police are not involved. We work independently. Ok?”

Suddenly his phone rang and chatter picked up on his walkie-talkie. “Is that good?” he asked. “That answers your questions?”

“That answers our questions for now,” Alex answered. “The community is out and we’re going to be watching.”

He told her to stay safe as he rolled his window back up, and she wished him the same. “You got it, thank you,” he said as he began driving away toward Verplanck. Soon after, all the cars were gone.

“We all need to be sand in the gears right now,” Alex told ALBB. “If you’re comfortable approaching, it’s time to do so. Those who have privilege can use it in these moments.”

FAQ: “Is This New? Has ICE Been In The Area?”

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spotted in Newburgh on Sunday, June 22, 2025 on Broadway standing outside of a Hispanic restaurant with possible intent of wanting to get to apartments above.
Photo Credit: Neighborhood Watch Groups in Newburgh

ICE has been targeting people throughout Dutchess and Orange Counties for months, but Friday’s abduction from North Elm Street was the first for Beacon. Video footage and photos of ICE standing outside bodegas and restaurants in the Hudson Valley have flown around group chats in the immigrant community, but verifying them for reporting has been difficult.

For example, this photo of ICE was in Newburgh on Sunday, June 22, 2025 on Broadway standing outside of a Hispanic restaurant. The photo was circulated to share location and also visual identification, as ICE can be wearing different outfits or driving different cars on different days. In this case, these men had possible intent of wanting to get to apartments above.

Beacon’s back-to-back sing operation marked the fist opportunity to cross-confirm developments for verifications and reporting. Prior to the driver identifying himself as ICE in the video above, a Beacon resident who had witnessed Friday’s raid confirmed that it was the same car and license plate returning on Saturday. The Neighborhood watch in Beacon was active again on Sunday, but no sightings that could be verified came in.

“I’m going to park my car in the driveway,” laughed one neighbor who has a similar car to one found in videos of ICE spotted parked on Main Street early Saturday morning. Some residents were ruffled about their parked cars being considered as ICE vehicles, but one resident who noticed activity around her vehicle said she appreciated the watch efforts and was horrified that ICE was in Beacon.

FAQ: “Why Now? Is This Because Of the No Kings Protest 2 Weeks Ago?”

No. In fact, it may have been because most in the Beacon community protest so hard that ICE has not been here, and instead started with low hanging, unprotected fruit in Newburgh, Cornwall and other areas. The Walmart in Fishkill, for instance, was targeted months ago, with flash checkpoints set up outside in the parking lot to question people as they walked in, according to one resident of Beacon whose mother was questioned for papers in such checkpoint.

The list that Dutchess County and Beacon were added to that Mayor Kyriacou and the National Sheriffs Association responded to on June 2nd maybe have been a warning shot to the beginning of raids or attempted raids in Beacon.

Patterns For Identifying ICE

Area experts have said that ICE tends to come in the mornings between 5-8am for the commute to work, and again from 5-8pm for the departure from work. But ICE can wait late at night as well, as shifts get out at different times. This has been known to happen in parts of Newburgh and other municipalities. On Sunday’s, ICE is known to camp out for the church service release at 12pm noon. ICE’s “work” knows no bounds.

There are different levels of involvement and engagement for identifying ICE. If one is to approach a vehicle to seek verification of an ICE agent, it is encouraged that the person inquiring is polite when seeking more information.

Should a raid be about to happen, it has been encouraged to bring a bucket in order to bang on it to make noise. New York is a one-party consent state, in that a conversation can be recorded if one party consents, and that person can be the person recording the conversation.

How The City Of Beacon Responded

After learning about the raid from several residents, Mayor Lee Kyriacou issued a statement, where he said that the City of Beacon had no advance knowledge of the raid, but did get confirmation from the FBI that it was an ICE operation.

He said that the City of Beacon did not know who the individual was who was taken; if a judicial warrant was presented before taking him; or where he is now. “Our Police Department is actively seeking further information regarding the situation at this time,” he said. As of Sunday, the Beacon Police have not issued an update as to the taken neighbor’s location or status.

“As a City, we remain committed to our safe, inclusive community policy,” he continued, “to preserving rights enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, and to avoiding any policies which engender fear among law-abiding families.