ICE raids Kansas meatpacking towns, detaining mother with baby, sparking protests
Sep 26, 2026·Location: Liberal, KS

ICE agents conducted large-scale enforcement operations in Dodge City, Garden City, and Liberal, Kansas—an area known as the 'golden triangle of beef'—arriving around September 22-23 and departing roughly three days later. Agents in unmarked vans and plain clothes stopped vehicles and detained dozens of people in surrounding communities, including a mother taken into custody with her baby, prompting a volunteer to arrange for a relative to retrieve the child. Hispanic and Latino residents described being stopped based on appearance, with agents even entering a local restaurant before being told to leave. Advocates said many detained had no criminal records, while Dodge City schools warned families of possible relative detentions and 120 students missed school at one elementary school. Community organizer Amy Soberanes delivered food to frightened residents and described children crying over detained parents, while worker Deymi Anayela Martinez Lemus described an empty parking lot and short staffing at area plants operated by Cargill and National Beef. Businesses closed or slowed operations, USDA data showed reduced cattle processing, and industry groups estimated millions in lost revenue. About 200 people protested in downtown Dodge City calling for immigration reform, and the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 2 condemned the operation. Kansas Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall criticized ICE for failing to coordinate with local officials, while DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said ICE targeted people with final removal orders and criminal histories rather than conducting worksite operations.
Timeline
Sources
- After ICE sweeps Kansas, schools warn families of detentions and a meatpacking plant delays shifts
hppr.org·Sep 23, 2026·archived copy
- Kansas residents are reeling amid sweeping ICE enforcement action at meat processing plants
KCUR·Sep 24, 2026·archived copy
- DHS Secretary responds to ICE operations in southwest Kansas
KWCH·Sep 28, 2026
- ICE raids in states that voted heavily for Trump are causing meatpackers to lose millions in revenue, and even Republican lawmakers are speaking out
fortune.com·Sep 26, 2026
- Immigration Raids Disrupting Kansas Meatpacking Operations | Farm Policy News
farmpolicynews.illinois.edu·Sep 28, 2026
- Immigration insights: Tears and action follow ICE raids in southwest Kansas
kiowacountypress.net·Oct 5, 2026
More incidents in Kansas
- ICE sweep detains 104 in southwest Kansas, sparking fear in immigrant communitiesSep 29, 2026 · Liberal, KS
- US citizen father and daughter say ICE racially profiled them in Kansas traffic stopSep 29, 2026 · Dodge City, KS
- 67-year-old De Soto man known for feeding stray cats deported after signing unclear papersSep 28, 2026 · De Soto, KS
- Families in Dodge City, Garden City and Liberal cope with fear after ICE raidsSep 24, 2026 · Dodge City, KS
- Longtime Dodge City worker detained by ICE despite years of complianceSep 23, 2026 · Dodge City, KS
- Guatemalan father detained by ICE days after bringing newborn homeSep 23, 2026 · Dodge City, KS