Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) named a new acting chief of the agency, according to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) memo shared with the Daily Caller News Foundation Tuesday.
Patrick “P.J.” Lechleitner, who previously led the agency’s Homeland Security Investigation’s (HSI) branch, will serve as the acting head, according to the memo. The outgoing acting head, Tae Johnson, announced his retirement in early June. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: ICE Memo Calls For ‘Rapidly Releasing’ Illegal Immigrants Ahead Of Trump-Era Border Policy’s End)
GUATEMALA CITY, GUATEMALA – MAY 30: Guatemalan police escort an accused criminal on the airport tarmac after he and other Guatemalans were deported from the United States on May 30, 2019 in Guatemala City, Guatemala. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
“Thank you for your tremendous support and making it easy for me to lead ICE, for the past two-and-a-half years; thank you for your dedication, commitment, and the sacrifices you make every day for the American people and our national security. It has been a tremendous honor and privilege to serve alongside you, and I’m extremely proud of the extraordinary work that we’ve accomplished together. I will forever advocate on behalf of you and the ICE mission,” Johnson wrote to ICE personnel in an early June internal memo, according to a copy of the document the Daily Caller News Foundation obtained.
A number of top immigration officials have announced their departures from the Biden administration in recent weeks, including Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz and Acting Deputy Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Benjamine “Carry” Huffman and Deputy Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary John Tien.
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