The role of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has expanded duringUS President Donald Trump's second term, as he declared a "national emergency" at the southern border and ended policies such as "catch and release."

ICE has increased"arrests and removals" since Trump took office on January 20. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS),in Trump's first 100 days, over 142,000 people were deported, though othershave disputed these numbers.

The intensified enforcement measures, including workplace raids and family separations, have triggered widespread protests. Most recently, there have been violent clashes in Los Angeles after ICE raids in early June 2025.

ICE deportations have received much attention on social media. But some viral videos and posts share unproven, misleading and fake claims. DW Fact check investigates three of them.

Claim: In a TikTok postwith over 800,000 views, a woman says, "They're throwing the deportees out of the planes and into the ocean. [...] they're shackling people, flying out into open ocean and throwing them out. The flight patterns, there is people tracking them on this app, the flights going out with the deportees. Watching them go out to the open ocean and circle back. A family in Italy saw five shackled bodies wash up on the shore." These claims have surgedon social media repeatedly in the past days.

DW Fact check: Unproven

While ICE does

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