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Mayor Eric Adams vowed to reopen the shuttered ICE office at Rikers Island following a closed-door meeting with President Trump’s border czar Tom Homan Thursday.

Adams, in a statement, said he was eyeing an executive order to reestablish a federal immigration presence at the troubled jail complex – with a new mandate to work with the feds on investigations targeting migrant criminals and gangbangers.

“We are now working on implementing an executive order that will reestablish the ability for ICE agents to operate on Rikers Island – as was the case for 20 years,” he said. “But now, instead ICE agents would specifically be focused on assisting the correctional intelligence bureau in their criminal investigations, in particular those focused on violent criminals and gangs.”


  Mayor Eric Adams vowed to reopen the shuttered ICE office at Rikers Island following a closed-door meeting with Trump border czar Thomas Homan. AP Mayor Eric Adams vowed to reopen the shuttered ICE office at Rikers Island following a closed-door meeting with Trump border czar Thomas Homan. AP

The hour-and-a-half meeting at Manhattan ICE offices was Adams’ second with Homan, and came after city council leaders met separately with the federal immigration czar.

Homan later told Newsmax that the meeting with Adams was a “good move” and took a swipe at other elected officials.

“A year ago we wouldn’t have this meeting,” he told the outlet. “I know [Illinois] Gov. [J.B.] Pritzker, who I have zero respect in, he’s even talking about, ‘Well, we should hand criminals over.’ Now [New York] Gov. [Kathy] Hochul, she came out after the violence here in New York City saying, ‘Well… criminal aliens should be removed.


  Adams, in a statement, said he was eyeing an executive order to reestablish a federal immigration presence at the troubled jail complex – with a new mandate to work with the feds on investigations targeting migrant criminals and gangbangers. Dennis A. Clark Adams, in a statement, said he was eyeing an executive order to reestablish a federal immigration presence at the troubled jail complex – with a new mandate to work with the feds on investigations targeting migrant criminals and gangbangers. Dennis A. Clark

“Well, I can’t do it if you don’t want me in Rikers Island,” Homan said. “I can’t do it with your sanctuary policies.”

Adams floated the idea of reopening the Rikers facility during a meeting with Homan in December before Trump took office — a move that signaled an about-face from Adams’ prior immigration stance.

Unlike their previous sit-down at Gracie Mansion, Adams on Thursday was summoned to 26 Federal Plaza to meet with Homan on his turf. 

Adams has faced criticism of being beholden to the Trump White House after the Department of Justice ordered federal prosecutors to toss their damning and far-reaching corruption case against the mayor earlier this month. 

Hizzoner had already begun to soften his long-running support of the Big Apple’s “sanctuary city” status before Trump took office.


  Adams meeting with Homan in Gracie Mansion on Dec. 12, 2024. Mayoral Photography Office/Michael Appleton via AP Adams meeting with Homan in Gracie Mansion on Dec. 12, 2024. Mayoral Photography Office/Michael Appleton via AP

The administration has taken a hard line against immigration-friendly cities like New York and Chicago — with US Attorney General Pam Bondi bashing the sanctuary cities this week.

“This is a new DOJ,” Bondi told reporters. “New York has chosen to prioritize illegal aliens over American citizens. It stops. It stops today.”

Sources said Wednesday that Homan was “not happy” about the Big Apple not doing more to fall in line with Trump’s promised crackdown on immigration. 

The feds this week clawed back from New York City $80 million in government funds the White House said was used to house and coddle migrants. 

Hizzoner told WPIX that the $80 million issue came up during his sit-down with Homan, but said the only concession was that “other municipalities also had money clawed.” 

In his statement Thursday, Adams seemed to be falling in line.

“As I have always said, immigrants have been crucial in building our city and will continue to be key to our future success,” the mayor said. “But we must fix our long-broken immigration system.


  Homan reportedly told Adams he is “not happy” with New York City’s participation in the immigration crackdown. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado Homan reportedly told Adams he is “not happy” with New York City’s participation in the immigration crackdown. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado

“Since the spring of 2022, New York City has been forced to shoulder the burden of a national humanitarian crisis where more than 230,000 migrants have come to our city seeking support at a cost of approximately $7 billion, with little help from the previous administration,” Adams said. 

“That is why I have been clear that i want to work with the new federal administration, not war with them, to find common ground.” 

In a follow-up interview on WPIX, Adams again suggested the city’s sanctuary city designation needed some tweaking, but did not provide details.

“I’ve been very clear on sanctuaries, cities, that we must adjust [what] the previous administration implemented and I think went too far with sanctuary cities,” he said. “I thought the intention was there, but the application was wrong.”


  A sign at a rally against ICE raids in New York on Feb. 13, 2025. REUTERS A sign at a rally against ICE raids in New York on Feb. 13, 2025. REUTERS

Meanwhile, the city council’s conservative “Common Sense Caucus” has been pushing Adams to get tougher on migrants.

Caucus leaders met with Homan on Thursday before he sat down with Adams, and said the border czar “is not messing around.”

“He wants absolute cooperation,” Councilwoman Vickie Paladino (R-Queens) told The Post as she left the meeting.

“The border czar wants to know where these gang members and criminal migrants are,” Paladino said. “They go from shelter to shelter to shelter. ICE wants to grab them as soon as they come out of that turnstile system we’ve got.”

Councilman Robert Holden (D-Queens) said the caucus is behind Homan’s efforts to clean up the Big Apple.

“We told the border czar there are situations the mayor would do certain things and he hasn’t done them,” Holden said.

“The mayor has to make good on some of his promises,” he added. “We want criminals out. It’s not happening. It’s not happening at a pace the president would like to see, and certainly Tom Homan would like to see.”

Other City Council members, however, took issue with Adams’ cooperation with the feds on immigration enforcement – namely the mayor’s promise to reopen the ICE office at Rikers.

“The mayor’s announcement of the intention to issue an executive order that allows the Trump administration access to Rikers is concerning, but we must see language of any purported executive order to evaluate its legality,” Speaker Adrienne Adams, along with Councilwoman Alexa Avilés and Councilwoman Sandy Nurse, wrote in a statement.

“We are prepared to defend against violations of the law, but this announcement only deepens the concern that the mayor is prioritizing the interests of the Trump Administration over those of New Yorkers,” they added.

— Additional reporting by Aneeta Bhole

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