A dramatic escape from Delaney Hall immigration detention center in Newark has sparked outrage, fear, and federal action.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed that four detainees broke through an interior wall, then pushed through an outside structure to flee into a parking lot on Thursday night. The escape followed growing unrest inside the facility, reportedly triggered by hours-late meals.
Senator Andy Kim of New Jersey visited the site Friday and confirmed detainees used a shallow wall to break free. “They blocked off security cameras and used the housing unit’s structure to escape,” he said.
DHS identified the escapees as two Colombian nationals facing burglary charges and two Honduran men, Franklin Norberto Bautista-Reyes and Joel Enrique Sandoval-Lopez, who were charged with aggravated assault. None had attorneys listed in public court records.
A senior DHS official said additional law enforcement agencies are helping track the escapees, but declined to name which ones.
Tension Boils Over Inside and Outside Delaney Hall
Outside the facility, protests had already turned tense earlier Thursday. Video shows demonstrators locking arms and pushing against gates as reports of the chaos inside began to spread. Amy Torres, head of the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, said officers used pepper spray and force. “People were tackled and dragged away,” she said.
Delaney Hall is operated by the private company GEO Group under a $1 billion federal contract. In a statement, the company denied widespread unrest and claimed conditions were stable.
But detainees and families tell a different story.
Mustafa Cetin, a lawyer for one detainee, said everything fell apart when meals were severely delayed. “Guards lost control. Detainees grew furious. Then they rioted,” he said.
Family Members Left in the Dark
A woman named Kimberly, a nurse from New Jersey, shared what her husband, currently detained, told her. “They were starving. Nobody told them anything, so they started fighting,” she said. Kimberly did not share her last name, fearing for her husband’s safety.
She said her Brazilian husband has lived in the United States for over a decade and is now facing deportation. “We’re just trying to stay together. But the system doesn’t seem to care,” she said. “We’re left in the dark.”
City Leaders Demand Accountability as Lockdown Continues
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka has long opposed the detention center. On Friday, he called for an end to the chaos. Baraka said GEO lacked the proper city permits and claimed detainees had been receiving only minimal food, sometimes just bread.
Baraka, who was arrested outside the facility in May during a protest, said the federal government needs to take responsibility. “It’s one chaotic moment after the next,” he said in a phone interview with The New York Times.
Mayor Ras J. Baraka statement on Delaney Hall breakout. pic.twitter.com/QhdZeoEyB8
— City of Newark (@CityofNewarkNJ) June 13, 2025
The facility is now under strict lockdown. All visitation has been suspended until further notice. Miguel Orea, from First Friends of New Jersey and New York, said families were turned away on Friday. “They’re using the cafeteria to house detainees being moved out. That’s why food service is collapsing,” he said.
This escape comes as the federal government increases immigration enforcement. ICE currently detains over 53,000 people across the country, far above its usual capacity. The Biden administration is facing pressure from both sides, with advocates demanding humane treatment and conservatives pushing for tougher crackdowns.
The Newark escape could now become a national flashpoint.
Senator Kim said he is pushing for transparency and believes major relocations of detainees from Delaney Hall are coming soon. For now, four detainees remain at large, and the city is still waiting for answers.