ICE Plans Cash Rewards for Private Bounty Hunters to Locate and Track Immigrants

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement is reportedly considering a unique approach to locate and track immigrants across the country. According to a procurement document reviewed by The Intercept, ICE plans to hire private bounty hunters to help with this task.

Under the plan, bounty hunters may receive "monetary bonuses" depending on their success in tracking down immigrants and reporting back to ICE. This incentive-based pricing structure is intended to encourage quick results from contractors.

ICE plans to provide bounty hunters with bundles of information on 10,000 immigrants at a time, with further assignments provided in increments of 10,000 up to 1 million. The goal is for contractors to surveil and confirm the home or work addresses of these immigrants using government-furnished case data, commercial data verification, and physical observation services.

Contractors are expected to use available surveillance tools, including those that ingest and track mobile phone location data, widely used by ICE already. Multiple verification sources will be recommended to achieve a high confidence level in the accuracy of their findings.

The plan not only involves on-the-ground monitoring but also digital surveillance. ICE says contractors can use off-the-shelf surveillance technology to confirm immigrants' addresses, including "Enhanced location research" that entails automated and manual real-time skip tracing.

Critics argue that this approach is overly invasive and authoritarian, potentially infringing on the rights of undocumented immigrants. The proposal has drawn comparisons with a plan reportedly circulated by Erik Prince, the former CEO of Blackwater, which aimed to establish a private bounty program to locate immigrants at the request of law enforcement officers.

As the US government grapples with issues of immigration and border control, this development raises questions about the role of private contractors in domestic law enforcement.

The US is heading down a slippery slope where it's all about who can get results fast & cheap. This bounty hunter plan sounds like something straight outta a dystopian novel . I mean, are we really outsourcing our immigration woes to private citizens with an axe to grind? It's just another example of how the government is looking for ways to cut costs, even if it means compromising on civil liberties.

And what's next? Private eye surveillance programs like the one mentioned in that Erik Prince plan? This whole thing smells like a slippery slope where we're trading in our values of justice & fairness for efficiency & profit. As a nation, are we really willing to trade away our principles just to make things easier? It's time someone asked those tough questions

This is getting crazy ... I mean, who needs a task force when you can just hire bounty hunters? It's like something out of a movie or a video game... they're basically going to send people after immigrants with bounties on their heads and expect them to turn themselves in. And what's with the "monetary bonuses" for catching these people? Sounds like a recipe for abuse . I mean, have we learned nothing from our history with private contractors like Blackwater? It's all about making money off of vulnerable populations... not good . And what about the digital surveillance aspect? That's just creepy . Can't we just focus on finding ways to help people who need help instead of chasing them down like outlaws?

I'm low-key freaking out about this ICE wants to hire bounty hunters to track down undocumented immigrants? It's like they're trying to create a whole new level of surveillance state What's next, private companies monitoring our phone records and tracking our every move? The idea that these bounty hunters could get monetary bonuses for finding people is just plain creepy . I'm not saying they shouldn't be held accountable for immigration issues, but this feels like a slippery slope . Where does it end? #SurveillanceState #ICE #BountyHunters #ImmigrationReform #PrivateContractors

I'm getting a bad vibe from this news . I mean, who do these bounty hunters think they are? Showing up at someone's doorstep just because they're undocumented? That sounds super invasive and scary. What if they get it wrong and start harassing the wrong person? And what about their rights as citizens? Don't we already have enough problems with the system?

I don't think this is a good idea at all. We need to focus on fixing our own immigration system, not hiring private contractors to do our dirty work for us. It's just too much power in the hands of these bounty hunters. What if they start getting paid to target specific groups or individuals? That would be totally unacceptable.

We should be working towards a more humane solution, not relying on people who are just trying to make a buck off other people's misfortunes. This is all just too weird and disturbing for me

This whole thing got me thinking... what happens when we hand over our safety nets to someone else? We're talkin' about bounty hunters, for real! They're like digital vigilantes. And the fact that they can get paid based on their success? That's like a big ol' carrot, right? But at what cost? Are we sacrificing some of our basic human rights for the sake of convenience and profit?

Think about it... if a private contractor is hired to track down an immigrant, who decides whether that person is a threat or not? Is it the contractor's job to make those decisions? And what happens when they mess up? Do we just expect them to keep on hunting because someone else is paying 'em? It's like we're creating this whole new class system, where some people have more power and influence than others just based on who they know or can afford.

Let's not forget that our neighbors are human beings too, with families and stories of their own. When do we stop seeing them as a problem to be solved? Instead of outsourcing our problems to private contractors, shouldn't we be working together to create a system that values everyone's humanity?

I'm low-key concerned about this new plan by ICE . I mean, who needs bounty hunters to track down immigrants? Can't they just use, like, social media or something to find these people? But nope, they want to hire contractors and give them bonuses for tracking people down... it's pretty sketchy, if you ask me .

And what's with the "monetary bonuses" thing? Is ICE trying to create a system where contractors are more interested in finding immigrants than actually helping people? That doesn't seem right . And have they thought about how this would affect immigrant communities? I mean, they're already super stressed out about being undocumented... do we really need to make it harder for them?

This whole thing feels like a slippery slope to me . Next thing you know, ICE will be hiring contractors to track down other groups of people too... and where does that stop? It's gotta be stopped before it gets outta hand!

This whole thing is just so concerning... I mean, who gives contracts to bounty hunters? It's like we're talking private security in our own country . I get that ICE needs help tracking down people, but hiring mercenaries doesn't seem like the right answer. It's not about making things easier for them, it's about us having a system that's already pretty broken.

I'm worried about the implications of this - what about someone who just got caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time? Who gets penalized then? The whole thing feels too aggressive and invasive to me. Can't we focus on more constructive ways to address our immigration issues?

this is some heavy stuff... thinkin' 'bout all these private bounty hunters snoopin' around for immigrants like they're fugitives or somethin'. it's like, what's the point of havin' a country if we can't trust our own people to figure out who's here and where? is this really the best way to tackle immigration issues? just a bunch of incentives for these contractors to jump at the chance to spy on people... what about all the potential false positives or misidentifications? that could be devastating for innocent folks.

I dont think its a good idea to hire bounty hunters to track down immigrants, its like something out of a bad movie they would be putting people's lives at risk just for a monetary bonus , and what happens when they make mistakes or find innocent people? we need to be careful about who we trust with our personal info and safety.

This is just gettin crazy ! Bounty hunters for ICE? Like, what's next? Sending them after debtors? It's already bad enough they can't even track people down without snoopin' on 'em with their fancy surveillance tech . And now they're gonna pay 'em to do it too? That's just twisted . I mean, what if these contractors end up harassing the wrong person by mistake? Or what if ICE tries to flip the script and says they gotta track down the bounty hunters too? This whole thing is just a recipe for disaster . We need to keep our government hands off our citizens' lives, you feel me?

This is getting out of hand! I don't think it's right that bounty hunters are being rewarded for tracking down immigrants. It sounds like a recipe for abuse and profiling. What's next? Private companies offering 'bonus' incentives to track down minority groups or activists? That's a slippery slope we shouldn't be sliding down. I'm worried about the erosion of trust in our law enforcement system when private contractors are getting rich off of it. Can't we just focus on creating comprehensive and fair immigration reform instead of relying on private interests to do it for us? It's like they're playing a game of 'surveillance capitalism' and it's not right!

This plan is super concerning dude! Giving bounty hunters a payday based on how many immigrants they can track down feels like a recipe for abuse of power . It's already hard enough to trust our own cops, let alone hiring private contractors who have no accountability . What if these contractors are just doing this to line their pockets and don't actually care about the immigrants' well-being? We gotta think about the impact on our community and make sure we're not creating a system that's gonna perpetuate more harm

man, this is so messed up ... like we're already talking about surveillance state and now they wanna hire bounty hunters to track ppl down? it's not just about finding undocumented immigrants, it's about monitoring their every move 24/7. what if these contractors start targeting ppl for no reason at all? like, who gets to decide who's a suspect?

and another thing, what's up with the 'monetary bonuses' for successful tracking? it sounds like we're talking about a privatized police force here... . i'm all for keeping our borders secure, but not at the cost of our civil liberties. this is just too much power in the hands of private contractors. we need to rethink our approach to immigration and law enforcement. it's time for some real change

THE IDEA OF HIRING PRIVATE BOUNTY HUNTERS TO TRACK DOWN IMMIGRANTS IS COMPLETELY REEKING OF DISASTER IT'S LIKE TAKING A BAD MOVIE FROM THE 90S AND TRYING TO PASS IT OFF AS A MODERN TAKE ON DOMESTIC LAW ENFORCEMENT. THESE PEOPLE ARE PROBABLY GOING TO USE ANY MEANS NECESSARY TO GET WHAT THEY WANT, INCLUDING INVASIVELY TRACKING DOWN INDIVIDUALS WITHOUT THEIR KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT AND GIVING BOUNTY HUNTERS MONETARY BONUSES FOR EVERY IMMIGRANT THEY CAN FIND IS JUST PLAIN SICKENING

This idea of hiring private bounty hunters to track down undocumented immigrants across the country makes me super uneasy . It's like we're living in a scene from a dystopian movie where corporations have more power than the government . I'm worried that this is just another example of how the government's policies are being outsourced to companies that don't really care about the human cost of their actions .

I mean, think about it - these bounty hunters will be incentivized to find and report back on undocumented immigrants, regardless of whether they're doing it out of the goodness of their hearts or just for a paycheck . And what happens if they get it wrong? Will they still get paid? It's like we're creating a system where the end justifies the means, and the means can be pretty brutal .

We need to have a real conversation about what it means to be a responsible member of society, not just about who's breaking the law or where they live . Can't we find ways to help people without resorting to this kind of invasive surveillance?