Elise Stefanik Grills Kathy Hochul in Explosive Hearing on Illegal Immigrant Crimes
Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) cornered Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on an executive order signed on her first day in office which instructed state officials to ignore federal civil detainers.
Some were rejected for illegal immigrants who were later released and went on to commit horrific crimes, including the immolation of a New Yorker on a subway in 2024.
Stefanik challenged Hochul to reject a policy she has repeatedly reauthorized.
“This is a continuation of your predecessor’s sanctuary state policies,” she said.
“I want to be sure we are defining sanctuary state properly,” Hochul replied before being cut off.
“I’ll define it for you,” Stefanik responded.
“It is the policy of the state that state officers or employees shall not disclose information to federal immigration authorities for the purpose of civil federal immigration enforcement.”
The Republican lawmaker then highlighted cases of several illegal immigrants who had civil detainers lodged by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement, which were ignored by New York officials.
Hochul was stumped when asked by Stefanik if she recalled the name of each suspect.
“Do you know who Saqir Akkan is?” she asked the governor.
“You should, as the governor of New York State.”
“Refresh my recollection,” Hochul responded.
Akkan was a Turkish illegal immigrant who pleaded guilty to the third-degree rape of a 15-year-old New York girl.
He crossed illegally from Mexico in 2023, according to border officials.
“These are high-profile cases. New Yorkers know about them and you don’t?” Stefanik went on, angrily gripping her microphone and leaning into her question.
She then questioned Hochul about Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala.
He had previously been deported but sneaked back into the U.S.
While on drugs, he set fire to a sleeping woman on a New York subway in 2024, burning her to death while dozens of others looked on.
“I don’t have the specific details at my disposal,” Hochul said when asked if she remembered who Zapeta-Calil is.
“ICE issued an order to detain this violent criminal, but that was rejected by New York officials, due to sanctuary state laws.”
“These crimes are horrific,” Hochul tried to get out before Stefanik continued.
Hochul then attempted to defend her record, saying state officials are willing to cooperate with criminal detainer requests.
“In all of these cases, we would work with ICE to remove them–”
“You did not in this case!” Stefanik shouted.
Watch:
“They are walking on the streets because of your policies and your executive order that you signed three times.”
“Rather than going after the viral moment, I suggest you look at the facts–”
“I’m standing up for New Yorkers!” the Republican said, standing firm.
“Rather than addressing the illegals in New York, you’re prioritizing your far-left sanctuary policies which you put in place with your executive orders.”
READ: Kathy Hochul’s $370M Gun Control Plan Includes Credit Card Surveillance of Ammo Sales