What to Know
- A manhunt is underway for an ICE detainee who escaped custody Tuesday at JFK, hopped into a taxi and fled the airport, Port Authority says
- The detainee was being transferred in Terminal 4 from one flight to another when he somehow bolted away from officials
- ICE says he has prior criminal convictions for multiple weapons and firearms offenses; anyone who sees him should call authorities
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainee with multiple prior violent convictions and nearly a dozen arrests in New York City over a four-year period escaped custody as he was set to be deported at John F. Kennedy International Airport, leaped into a yellow taxi cab and darted off, officials and sources say.
Nearly a day later, authorities still have not been able to track him down -- and they are warning anyone who may see him not to approach.
The detainee, 31-year-old Mohamadou Lamine Mbacke, was at JFK for a layover from Detroit en route to Senegal at the time of the escape Tuesday night, sources and ICE officials told News 4.
Three ICE agents were escorting him through a security checkpoint in Terminal 4 and took off his handcuffs to comply with TSA regulations, the sources said. That's when he gave them the slip, Port Authority police said.
Port Authority officials say a review of one of the airport’s cameras shows the detainee getting into the cab around 9 p.m Tuesday. He hasn't been seen since.
Mbacke has previous criminal convictions for multiple weapons and firearms offenses, according to an ICE spokesperson. He entered the country lawfully in 2005 before violating the terms of his status and was ordered deported in September 2015 by an immigration judge.
He was also arrested 10 times in New York City between 2006 and 2010, NYPD sources told News 4. All but one arrest is sealed; that one was marijuana-related. Those sources say he was also wanted for aggravated harassment in the city in 2016, though he wasn't arrested. His last known address is Harlem.
State, federal and local authorities are all looking for Mbacke.
Mbacke is about 6 feet 3 inches tall, 190 pounds andwas last seen wearing a black or purple shirt, jeans and sneakers.
ICE says any civilians who spot him are advised not to approach him and to immediately contact authorities.
