20 Arrested in ICE Raids Total 52 Held at Geauga Jail

January 27, 2025 by Staff Report

Twenty people arrested Jan. 26 by U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement are currently being housed at the Geauga County Safety Center, said Geauga County Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand.

“ICE called (Sunday) and asked if we can house 20 detainees,” he said in a phone interview Jan. 27. “They brought them in the same day.”

Chief Deputy Tom Rowan said Jan. 28 over the last couple of weeks, there have been 30 to 40 ICE detainees brought to the center and the count, as of Tuesday morning, was 52 of a total jail population of 151.

The facility has 182 beds, he said.

“Five, (who are suspected of entering the country illegally) were released last night and one the day before,” he said of the detainees, adding ICE picked them up without any reason being given. 

He suspects they may have been taken for deportation.

The number of people arrested in Geauga County is pretty small, he said, confirming six of the recent 20 came in following the raid of a Mexican restaurant in Cleveland Heights.

Sometimes, ICE collects and other times they are released to family members, Rowan said.

Where they go from there is unknown to the department.

“Once they’re released, they’re released. We have nothing to do with that,” he said, confirming many of the detainees had been arrested in Cuyahoga County.

None of them were juveniles, Rowan said, adding the safety center cannot hold juveniles.

He also confirmed there are no families of detainees at the center.

It’s not uncommon for the Geauga jail to hold detainees for ICE, but this amount was unprecedented, Hildenbrand said.

“We have not gotten that many at one time. I don’t know how long they will stay,” he said.

ICE pays $100 per detainee per day, so 20 prisoners adds up to about $2,000 per day, the sheriff said.

The county’s contract with ICE covers detainees from many entities.

“Any federal law enforcement agency can piggyback on the ICE contract,” Rowan said, adding Cuyahoga and Ashtabula counties and many police departments on the east side of Cleveland have contracts with the sheriff, as well.

“If they call and we have the room, we take them,” he said.

If a court appearance is needed, the center is set up with a video room and the matter is handled virtually, Rowan said.

ICE detainees may even “appear” in federal court anywhere in the U.S. via video feed, he said.

For any language barriers, Rowan said the jail uses a language line service and a pocket talk device that translates information to detainees.

Fox 8 News reported Jan. 27 the targeted operation to round-up undocumented people across the U.S. is part of President Donald Trump’s mission to deport the largest number of illegal aliens in the country’s history. 

Across the U.S., 538 people were arrested Jan. 23, almost 600 were arrested Jan 24 and nearly 1,000 on Sunday “…including a group from a Venezuelan gang at a club in Colorado,” according to the report.