By DAMIEN FISHER, InDepthNH.org
CONCORD – State Rep. Wendy Thomas wrapped up her testimony on HB1609 Thursday quoting a message from a source saying a Merrimack police officer on patrol confirmed the location of a proposed ICE holding center when the officer stopped them from taking photos of it.
“Apparently, it’s a done deal in Merrimack,” Thomas, D-Merrimack, told members of the House Executive Departments and Administration committee who were hearing House Bill 1609. The bill would prohibit the use of state, county, and municipal funds and property for construction and operation of certain immigrant detention facilities.
Merrimack Police Chief Brian Levesque called Thomas’ statement “reckless” and not true.
Thomas explained her position in favor of the bill at the hearing, and based her statement on the message from someone who told her they were told by a Merrimack police officer to leave the area of the warehouse at 50 Robert Milligan Parkway because the property is now controlled by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“‘We wanted to get photos of the building when a Merrimack police officer pulled up and asked for ID. When we asked if we were breaking a law, they said no, but the officer said they were told to patrol the area because it was an ICE holding area,’” Thomas said, reading the message into the hearing record.
But Chief Levesque told InDepthNH.org he received several calls about the same thing and called it a “rumor.”
“For Rep. Thomas to testify that we’re confirming it’s an ICE facility is reckless, in my opinion,” Levesque said. He said he has been trying to get a hold of Thomas since the rumors started circulating that police have confirmed ICE is taking over the warehouse, but to no avail.
“There’s no confirmation at all,” Levesque said. “We have nothing to do with ICE.”
Levesque did confirm that officers talked to the people who wrote to Thomas, but said that is because the property now has a no trespassing sign to prevent low-level hooliganism in the parking lot.
“Our officers came across someone who shouldn’t be there,” Levesque said.
The warehouse in question was built to possibly house Amazon, but the deal never happened and it has been empty since being built.
There has been no official confirmation about a proposed plan. What has been made public has come from a Washington Post story Dec. 24, 2025, and what appears to be a leaked list of 46 potential ICE sites across the country, including Merrimack, to house immigrants to speed up the deportation process.
The list was posted on social media by state Rep. Rosemarie Rung, D-Merrimack, Wednesday. That post is listed below.
HB 1609 was sponsored by Rep. David Meuse, D-Portsmouth, and Rep. Nicholas Germana, D-Keene.
Meuse introduced the bill Thursday telling lawmakers that state funds should not be taken from New Hampshire taxpayers and given to ICE, or the private prison companies contracted by the federal government.
“New Hampshire taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize a federal agency that’s basically bathing in blood money right now. The bottom line is immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility. It is not a state responsibility. So let’s make sure that paying for it remains a federal responsibility,” Meuse said.
The bill received a positive reception at the hearing and online testimony showed 2003 people in support and 113 opposed.
(Reporter Nancy West contributed to this report)
The following is Rep. Rung’s posting on the Positive Merrimack Forum page on Facebook.
