GREAT BEND — Federal agents notified local dispatchers Thursday morning that they would be operating in the Great Bend area, the Great Bend Police Department said in a news release Thursday afternoon.
According to the release, the Barton County Communications Center was contacted at about 9 a.m. Thursday and told that agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security would be operating in the Great Bend area that day. No other information was provided about the scope or nature of the agents' activity.
The police department said it has not received any requests to assist the DHS agents. It said it will release more information if it becomes available.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is an agency within DHS. Its Enforcement and Removal Operations division, known as ERO, handles immigration arrests and deportations.
The Barton County Communications Center, which handles 911 and emergency dispatch for the county, operates under the Barton County Sheriff's Office.
Speaking with the Tribune earlier Thursday, Barton County Undersheriff Steve Bellinger said he was not directly aware of any active ICE operations in Barton County. He said federal agents are not legally required to notify local law enforcement before conducting operations, and that ICE regularly picks up detainees from the Barton County Detention Facility.
Bellinger later called the Tribune back and said he had not known that federal agents contacted dispatch. He said the Communications Center employee who took the call notified the police department but not the sheriff's office. He described it as an employee oversight and said he wanted to make clear he had been straightforward in his earlier comments.
Sen. Marshall's response to ICE operations
U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., released a statement regarding recent ICE activity in southwest Kansas. Marshall said ICE and Kansas law enforcement have worked together over the past two years to remove violent criminals, human traffickers and drug dealers.
"However, in recent days in Southwest Kansas, law enforcement officers were not given advance notice or the level of cooperation we would expect from ICE's enforcement and removal operations," Marshall said. "As a result, there have been mass disruptions to local communities and businesses."
Marshall said he has spoken with several sheriffs and police chiefs about their experiences this week and relayed their concerns directly to DHS. His statement did not specifically mention Great Bend or Barton County.
The release follows reports of ICE activity across the western Kansas area throughout the week.
More video encounters
A video, which the Tribune confirmed was recorded in the 1500 block of Holland Street, shows an officer wearing a vest marked "ERO" getting out of his vehicle and approaching a woman who had been pulled over. "Hi ma'am, sorry, this car is registered to you?" the officer asks. He then says the vehicle is registered to another person he may need to speak with. The officer does not identify himself at any point in the video, which ends as he returns to his vehicle.
The person who posted the video said on social media that her sister had been arrested by ICE and was last seen on Holland Street. The Tribune has reached out to the woman for comment.
Local law enforcement has not confirmed whether the encounter was connected to the operations described in Thursday's release.
Great Bend Public Schools also sent a letter to families Thursday morning. In it, the district said student information will not be shared, and access to students will not be granted, without parental consent or a lawfully issued warrant, subpoena or court order.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
