Not Afraid to Be Free

🚨DOJ Subpoena Undermined as Migrant Hotels Close, Leaving Feds in the Dark In March, the U.S. Department of Justice issued subpoenas to the Roosevelt Hotel, Chandler Hotel, and Stewart Hotel—three major migrant shelters in New York City. Since then, the Chandler and Stewart have shut down completely, and the Roosevelt is expected to close in June. It remains unclear whether the DOJ ever received a full list of residents from these locations. Many of the migrants who were housed in these hotels have since been quietly transferred to Department of Homeless Services (DHS) shelters, which are controlled by the city. Federal authorities reportedly have little or no access to who is currently staying in these facilities, leaving the DOJ largely in the dark. The timing raises serious questions. It’s more than a little strange that shortly after the DOJ issued subpoenas, these hotels began shutting down—and now no one seems to know exactly where some of the residents have been sent. The abrupt closures have effectively scattered the population, making it harder for federal investigators to track certain individuals. As someone who has been covering the migrant crisis extensively, I know for a fact that there are gang members, violent offenders, and even murder suspects currently living in DHS shelters across the city. Some of those individuals had previously been housed at the Roosevelt and Chandler Hotels. In one case, I personally tracked a murder suspect to the Chandler, while staff at the location denied he was there. According to law enforcement sources, the DOJ’s focus isn’t on ordinary migrants, but on identifying and locating violent criminals who may now be living undetected within the city’s shelter system. With these hotels closed and oversight limited, that task may have just gotten much harder. By @LeeroyPress For licensing email [email protected]