ICE Field Offices Got Verbal Guidance to Stop Non-Criminal and Collateral Arrests, Then Reaffirming Guidance Within Hours; Issuer Unreported

The Daily Wire reported on September 26, 2026 that “ICE officers across the country were told this weekend to cease arrests of all non-criminals, agency sources tell The Daily Wire,” including people with final deportation orders and no convictions or charges, and that “collateral arrests” had ended. The sources were anonymous ICE officers. Fox News’s Bill Melugin wrote at 12:01 AM EDT September 27 that “this verbal guidance did go out to ICE offices across the country last night,” that agents who received it “were shocked & frustrated,” and that “It’s unclear who it started with.” He added that he was told it was “erroneous” and a “miscommunication”, and that “new guidance went out to ICE field offices tonight” so that arrests of people “without additional criminal history will continue.” The Daily Wire’s September 28 follow-up reported that “A White House official also confirmed that some ICE officers received the verbal guidance to stop arresting non-criminals,” and that “Within hours, ICE gave officers the green light to continue.” Fox News reported on September 29 that it “remains unclear who initially issued the instruction” and that Fox “was told it was a ‘misunderstanding’ and that the person responsible would likely face reprimand.”

First-hand in the record: the Daily Wire and Melugin reports (anonymous sources), the DHS X post of 11:50 PM EDT September 26 (“This is false. No one is off the table.”), and White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis’s “no one is off the table.” Not located: the guidance text, written or verbal; any named issuer; any arrest data for the weekend. Former officials (Scott Mechkowski, John Sandweg) offered a miscommunication theory but are outside the agency. Voz’s account placing the scoop and denial on “Friday night” conflicts with the X timestamps (Saturday).

The episode is the second reported reversal of an ICE restriction under Secretary Markwayne Mullin; in July, Trump overruled a pause of most ICE traffic stops after shootings in Maine and Houston. It sits alongside the DHS “nationwide public safety surge in sanctuary cities” post made the same night: 2026-09-26–dhs-posts-nationwide-sanctuary-city-surge-denies-ice-non-criminal-arrest-stop.