Trump admin blasts NY Times over ‘sob’ story on deported kidnapper

The Trump Department of Homeland Security slammed the New York Times for publishing “sob stories” about deported criminal illegal immigrants while ignoring their victims.

The department criticized the outlet for publishing such an account about Nascimento Blair, a 44-year-old Jamaican national who was removed from the country by ICE on Feb. 27 after being convicted of kidnapping.

On Thursday, The New York Times published an extensive story about Blair in which the outlet claimed that he was a “changed man” who “had been rebuilding his life and seeking redemption.”

The Times reported that, in addition to kidnapping, Blair had been selling marijuana and had been accused of kidnapping, “pistol-whipping” and demanding money from a teenager who had stolen some of his supply. After being convicted of kidnapping, The Times said that Blair used his time in prison to get bachelor’s and master’s degrees and that after his release, he got involved with his community and volunteered.

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The Trump Department of Homeland Security slammed the New York Times for publishing “sob stories” about deported criminal illegal immigrants while ignoring their victims. (ICE and Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The outlet wrote that “to Mr. Blair and his supporters, his life story was one of rehabilitation, nuanced and filled with qualities that they believe Mr. Trump’s deportation machine disregards as it flies out immigrants en masse.”

Slamming The Times’ coverage, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin asked, “Why does the New York Times continue to peddle sob stories about criminal illegal aliens and ignore their victims?”

According to a statement by ICE, Blair entered the U.S. in 2004 and then violated the terms of his admission. A year after his arrival, Blair was arrested by the Mount Vernon Police Department for first-degree kidnapping. He was convicted of the crime and sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The agency said that an immigration judge ordered Blair removed from the U.S. on Aug. 4, 2008. However, Blair was allowed to stay in the country after the New York State Department of Corrections released him on parole on April 9, 2020.

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DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said that “thanks to President Trump and Secretary Noem, this kidnapper was arrested and is now out of our country.” (Fox News)

ICE’s New York City field office finally arrested him on Feb. 3, 2025.

McLaughlin told Fox News Digital that it was “because of the previous administration’s open border policies, this criminal illegal alien was released onto the streets of New York.”

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She said, “Thanks to President Trump and Secretary Noem, this kidnapper was arrested and is now out of our country.”

“President Trump and Secretary Noem have made it clear that we are prioritizing arresting and deporting the worst of the worst,” said McLaughlin.

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U.S. President Donald Trump sits in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., March 7, 2025.  (Reuters/Leah Millis)

“That includes convicted kidnappers,” she continued, adding, “We are restoring commonsense to our immigration system.”  

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In response to the DHS criticism, a New York Times spokesperson told Fox News Digital that “Mr. Blair’s history is central to our reporting, and prominently described throughout the story.”