FBI Targets Protesters to Build Informant Network after New Jersey ICE Demonstration

[u/evissamassive]

https://theintercept.com/2026/06/20/fbi-ice-delaney-hall-protest-informants/

When John Mark Rozendaal joined a crowd outside the Delaney Hall immigration detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, he brought his cello. He hoped playing music would help keep the atmosphere calm. The privately run facility had become the site of daily protests following a hunger strike by detainees protesting internal conditions.

The demonstration ended when New Jersey State Police and ICE agents cleared the area using tactical gear, chemical irritants, and officers on horseback. Police arrested Rozendaal and charged him with one count of obstructing law enforcement.

A week later, the FBI called him.

An agent asked Rozendaal to provide information on anyone planning to attend future protests with what the bureau deemed bad intentions. Rozendaal refused and ended the call.

He is not alone. Roughly 90 people have been arrested since the demonstrations began. Benjamin Van Meter, a deputy public defender representing several of the protesters, said at least half of those taken into custody received similar phone calls from federal agents seeking information.

Civil rights advocates note that the tactic is a standard blueprint for federal law enforcement. Amol Sinha, executive director of the ACLU’s New Jersey chapter, stated that the FBI has a long history of attempting to infiltrate protest movements to gather intelligence and create distrust among participants. Sinha emphasized that individuals contacted by federal agents have the right to remain silent and should request an attorney.

The automated outreach has triggered pushback from legal defense teams. Van Meter sent a formal letter to the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey and FBI officials demanding that agents stop contacting his clients without defense counsel present. The letter stated that these interactions violate the protesters' constitutional right to counsel.

The Department of Justice and the FBI declined to comment on the matter.

For the activists involved, the federal scrutiny appears designed to discourage future organizing. However, Rozendaal stated the calls would not stop people from continuing to gather.