DHS Scrambles After ICE Buys 2,500 Vehicles Agents Say They Can’t Use

Thousands of vehicles ordered for Immigration and Customs Enforcement are now sitting unused, creating a costly operational problem for the Department of Homeland Security.

The fleet, purchased during 2025, included roughly 2,500 pickup trucks and SUVs wrapped with ICE branding and the slogan “Defend the Homeland.” Agents say the markings make them nearly impossible to use for everyday enforcement work.

The order was approved under then-ICE deputy director Madison Sheahan, who was appointed at age 28 and served as a close political ally of former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. According to reporting from International Business Times and the Washington Examiner, field agents had warned that highly visible vehicles would undermine undercover immigration operations.

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Instead, the vehicles arrived fully branded in dark navy paint with gold ICE lettering — a design agents say alerts communities immediately when immigration officers arrive in an area.

Many of the vehicles are now parked in garages or detention centers across the country because agents say using them during street-level enforcement would reveal their presence and disrupt investigations. Some are reportedly used only for custodial transfers from jails.

“ICE has never had marked vehicles,” one source familiar with the purchase told the Washington Examiner.

The situation has created new scrutiny around spending decisions inside DHS, particularly because career ICE officials reportedly were not consulted before the order was placed.

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Lawmakers have also raised concerns about oversight after the agency declined to disclose the full cost of the fleet procurement, which occurred during a broader expansion of immigration enforcement funding.

Now DHS officials are attempting to salvage the situation by modifying the remaining orders so that future vehicles arrive without the ICE branding.

Whether the already delivered vehicles can be repurposed — or how much taxpayer money could ultimately be recovered — remains unclear.

For now, hundreds of the vehicles remain parked and largely unused.

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