Luxury hotels in New York City including the Roosevelt, recipients of $59 million from FEMA to house immigrants, were a base of operations for Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and served as a residence of the convicted killer of Laken Riley.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem shared the startling revelation early Wednesday afternoon, just more than 48 hours after the Department of Government Efficiency team led by Elon Musk revealed the payments. She specifically said the Roosevelt Hotel was utilized by the notorious gang with members among the highest priority in thousands of arrests and detainers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement since the inauguration of President Donald Trump.
“I have clawed back the full payment that FEMA deep state activists unilaterally gave to NYC migrant hotels,” Noem wrote on social media. “FEMA was funding the Roosevelt Hotel that serves as a Tren de Aragua base of operations and was used to house Laken Riley’s killer. Mark my words: there will not be a single penny spent that goes against the interest and safety of the American people.”
Riley, a Georgia nursing student, was murdered while out jogging. Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, was illegally in the country and subsequently found guilty in November 2024.
The murder became a rallying cry for conservatives and a central issue in Trump’s reelection campaign.
The bipartisan Laken Riley Act – authorizing law enforcement to detain people illegally in America arrested for committing theft, assaulting law enforcement, or causing serious injury or death to another person – was the first major bill the 47th president signed into law on Jan. 29.
