Kristi Noem Taps New Leader of ICE After Forcing Workers to Take Polygraphs Over Media 'Leaks'

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced new leadership posts at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as the agency faces frustration from the Trump administration over what the current pace of deportations.

Concretely, Todd Lyons, the former assistant director of field operations for the agency's enforcement arm, will be the new acting director. Madison Sheahan, a former aide of Noem's when she was governor of South Dakota, will be the deputy director.

Acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello was removed from his post on February 21 after both President Donald Trump and border czar Tom Homan expressed frustration with the pace of deportations.

"If you look at the rest of interior enforcement, it's about three times higher than it was a year ago today. Three times higher is good, but I'm not satisfied. There are more criminal aliens that need to be arrested, hundreds of thousands," Homan said in February. "Sanctuary cities are putting roadblocks up. We've got leaks. So we need to increase the arrests of illegal aliens, especially those with criminal convictions. So we're going to continue."

The announcement comes as the agency is also seeking to root out leaks regarding its operations, something top officials have described as dangerous. Noem said the agency will be prosecuting "two leakers of information," claiming on Sunday that the people were "leaking our enforcement operations that we had planned and were going to conduct in several cities and exposed vulnerabilities." They could face up to ten years in prison if found guilty.

Noem also said on Sunday that DHS will step up the use of lie detectors to that end. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said "we can, should, and will polygraph personnel."

The development follows accusations from Noem and border czar Tom Homan about the danger posed by the leaks. Earlier this month they pointed toward the FBI over leaks regarding upcoming "large scale" ICE immigration raids in Los Angeles.

"Some of the information we've been receiving tends to lead toward the FBI," Homan said in an interview with Fox News in early February. "I've talked to the Deputy Attorney General this weekend, they've opened up a criminal investigation and promised this person will not only lose her job or pension, they will go to jail," the official added.

It is not the first such leak in the context of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. ICE postponed in late January a raid in Aurora, Colorado, after media reported about the operation, claiming it was putting agents' security at risk.