Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York | Department of Justice
Henry Yau, a former supervisory deportation officer with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), pled guilty on Mar. 26 to conspiring to solicit and accept bribes and gratuities, according to an announcement by United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton.
The case highlights concerns about public trust in law enforcement officers responsible for enforcing immigration laws and protecting national security. The prosecution said that Yau abused his position by disclosing confidential law enforcement information, alerting an individual about an ongoing FBI investigation, and arresting a person at the request of individuals involved in a bank fraud conspiracy.
"U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Officers are entrusted with enforcing our country’s immigration laws to preserve national security and public safety," said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. "They deserve our respect when they carry out their duties with integrity and professionalism. Henry Yau failed his fellow officers and the people of New York when he breached their trust in exchange for bribes and gratuities. He does not deserve our respect. He deserves a conviction."
Court records show that from around 2015 through November 2024, Yau worked as a deportation officer before being promoted to supervisory deportation officer in September 2021 at ICE's New York Field Office in Manhattan. During this time, he had access to several password-protected law enforcement databases containing sensitive information related to immigration status, border crossings, criminal histories, arrests, removals of aliens from the United States, as well as pending federal investigations.
Yau admitted participating with others in a scheme involving cash payments, expensive dinners, bottles of alcohol as bribes or gratuities exchanged for providing confidential information or processing entry into the United States for foreign nationals at others' requests.
Yau pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to accept bribes and gratuities; this charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison prescribed by Congress but will ultimately be determined by a judge.
Clayton praised the investigative work conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) along with assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Professional Responsibility, Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, and New York City Department of Investigation.
