Trump-appointed judge accuses ICE of lying and fabricating records

On October 5, 2026, Trump-appointed federal judge Gary R. Brown issues a scathing 28-page ruling accusing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents of lying, fabricating records, and giving perjurious testimony to cover up the illegal May 2026 arrests of Angel Jesus Almonte and U.S. citizen Jeury Concepcion in the Bronx. Brown highlights the agents' inexperience, calls their database-search process misleading, and gives the government 21 days to explain how it will address these issues.

Falsification of official arrest records

• ▪An Immigration and Customs Enforcement supervisor signed an administrative arrest warrant for Angel Jesus Almonte falsely claiming that database checks and biometric confirmation showed Almonte lacked immigration status, despite initial database searches returning negative results
• ▪Judge Gary R. Brown found that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents falsified official records, including an administrative arrest warrant and a certificate of service, to conceal their illegal actions
• ▪Immigration and Customs Enforcement team leader Katepodis admitted during a court hearing that a signed certificate of service certifying that Katepodis had served the administrative arrest warrant on Angel Jesus Almonte and read it in Spanish was false

Unsubstantiated drug allegations

• ▪No drugs, cash, or drug paraphernalia were found on Angel Jesus Almonte, and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement report documenting his arrest made no mention of the alleged drug transactions described by agents Yassin and Brodowsky
• ▪Judge Gary R. Brown stated that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers Yassin and Kevin Brodowsky gave conflicting testimony about observing Angel Jesus Almonte participating in drug transactions, which was contradicted by government lawyers and probably constituted perjury

Illegal and violent Bronx arrests

• ▪During a May 2026 Bronx operation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Jeury Concepcion, a U.S. citizen who sustained head injuries requiring stitches during what Judge Gary R. Brown, in his 28-page ruling, described as an extremely violent arrest
• ▪U.S. District Judge Gary R. Brown ruled on October 5, 2026, that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents illegally arrested Angel Jesus Almonte and Jeury Concepcion in the Bronx in May 2026

Judge's orders and potential sanctions

• ▪Judge Gary R. Brown stated he could consider imposing sanctions, referring the matter of the Bronx arrests to other authorities, or initiating contempt proceedings against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents involved in those arrests
• ▪Judge Gary R. Brown provisionally granted Angel Jesus Almonte's habeas petition and ordered the federal government to explain within 21 days how it will address the problems identified in his 28-page ruling

Debatable claims

• ▪The Justice Department should criminally prosecute the ICE agents who falsified records
• ▪The wrongful Bronx arrests reflect a systemic pattern of misconduct within ICE
• ▪ICE's training standards for deportation officers are inadequate for field operations
• ▪ICE's administrative warrant process lacks sufficient oversight to prevent abuse