ICE Booked More Than 46,000 People Into Detention in July, the Highest Month of Trump’s Second Term

Immigration and Customs Enforcement took more than 46,000 people into custody in July 2026, a monthly record for the second Trump administration, according to preliminary Homeland Security figures obtained by CBS News and reported Aug. 2. That surpassed roughly 43,000 book-ins in June. An average of about 1,500 people entered custody each day. As of that weekend ICE held about 68,000 detainees, approaching the record of more than 70,000 set in January.

The figures have not been publicly released. CBS reported the increase came through quieter tactics — airport arrests enabled by TSA information-sharing, traffic stops, and newly hired agents — rather than last year’s large city operations, after Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin replaced Kristi Noem with the stated goal of keeping ICE out of the headlines. Detention at this scale bears directly on custody conditions and on immigration courts’ capacity.

DHS told CBS it had deported more than 985,000 people as of July 12. Those are the department’s own figures, not independently verified.