Wes Moore warns Noem 'federal occupation' of new ICE compound now under state investigation

Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore warned Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Friday that her agency’s recent purchase of a warehouse-like building in Williamsport will be scrutinized by the Old Line State’s legal arm.

Moore, running for re-election this year, added his voice to the chorus of state Democrats expressing outrage over DHS’ reported plans to use the space to house illegal immigrants. Maryland has been front and center in the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda with the saga of illegal immigrant Kilmar Ábrego García.

Moore described DHS’ status at the property, sandwiched between the city of Hagerstown and the Potomac River on the West Virginia border, as a "federal occupation" of a space that was originally zoned as a commercial site.

The governor said the agency’s use of the area presents a "significant loss of economic opportunity" for Washington County and the state at large.

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The site stands near the confluence of Interstates 70 and 81, and Moore said it uses up precious space in an area key to the 4,000-job "manufacturing, logistics and distribution" sector across the region.

Moore said Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, a fellow Democrat, will be reviewing the purchase to "ensure full compliance with all applicable state and federal laws."

"I have grave concerns about any holding facility that denies basic human needs and dignity," Moore said.

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Kristi Noem, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, speaks at the Mexican border, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Nogales, Ariz. (Ross D. Franklin/AP Photo)

"I am directing state agency heads to assess all available actions to protect the community’s infrastructure, public safety, health and long-term economic stability, including review of permitting requirements; water and sewer demands; hazardous waste disposal; and the availability of emergency medical services, among other considerations."

He added that Annapolis still seeks to work with the Trump administration on areas they can find common ground such as economic opportunity, crime and infrastructure, noting Maryland has a long history of being a federal partner, housing the headquarters of NASA-Goddard, USDA, NSA, NIH and installations like Fort George Meade and Andrews Air Force Base.

"We urge the administration to move past unilateral actions and join us in a transparent and collaborative effort to enhance the safety and well-being of Marylanders."

Moore also criticized Noem’s refusal to grant FEMA funds for Maryland Panhandle communities ravaged by 2025 flooding from Georges Creek and the Potomac River.

In recent comments to Fox News Digital, former GOP state Del. Neil Parrott, who long represented the area where the ICE site sits, countered that it was Maryland Democrats’ posture toward the Trump administration that squandered the opportunity to get FEMA funds for his area.

Additionally, Total Wine billionaire David Trone, who is running for his prior U.S. House seat in the area where the future detention center will be, filmed a video outside its property saying DHS is "literally executing people on the streets."

"We know one thing. We don't need another ICE prison here or anywhere else in America," Trone said.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore in Annapolis, Md., Feb. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Steve Ruark)

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Just across the Potomac River from the site, West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey told Fox News Digital the collective outrage over the new ICE center is a "representation of the generalized idiocy of most of the Democrats in Congress who have sat on their hands for the last 25 years and done nothing about the very immigration laws that they're very angry about being enforced."

To the south, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., echoed some of Moore's concerns this week, saying in a statement that he spoke directly with Noem about concerns over a proposed ICE facility near the border with Tennessee.

"I relayed to her the opposition of local elected and zoning officials as well as economic development concerns. I appreciate her for agreeing to look elsewhere," Wicker said of the planned transformation of a Byhalia, Mississippi, warehouse, which he said he "strongly oppose[s]."

"I am all for immigration enforcement, but this site was meant for economic development and job creation. We cannot suddenly flood Byhalia with an influx of up to 10,000 detainees."

Fox News Digital reached out to DHS for comment.