U.S. President Donald Trump said federal immigration agents will not suspend vehicle stops, reversing a temporary pause announced by administration officials after two fatal shootings involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers during traffic stops in Texas and Maine.
Trump's comments came one day after officials said ICE had ordered a temporary suspension of most vehicle stops nationwide while the agency reviewed the recent incidents.
The reversal followed fatal encounters involving two drivers who officials acknowledged were not the intended targets of enforcement operations.
The shootings have intensified scrutiny of ICE tactics and prompted demonstrations in several cities.
In a social media post, Trump described traffic stops as one of ICE's "most important and effective Crime Fighting tools" and said the agency should continue using the tactic.
His remarks contradicted statements made a day earlier by border czar Tom Homan, who characterized the suspension as a short-term safety review rather than a permanent policy change.
Homan said the review was intended to ensure agents were operating safely and appropriately during enforcement actions.
The Department of Homeland Security later reiterated that undocumented immigrants would continue to be arrested and deported wherever they were encountered.
The latest incidents involved the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Colombian national Johan Sebastian Duran during an enforcement operation in Biddeford, Maine, and the killing of Mexican national Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, Texas.
In both cases, authorities said the men were not the individuals ICE officers had originally sought.
Federal authorities have not presented evidence supporting claims that either man posed a threat warranting the use of lethal force, while family members and advocates have challenged official accounts.
The Texas shooting is under investigation by the agency's legal watchdog.
The deaths have prompted protests in Maine, Houston and Boston and renewed questions over ICE operational practices, including the lack of body cameras.
According to Reuters, at least seven people have been killed during federal immigration enforcement operations since January 2025, as arrests have increased under the administration's immigration crackdown.