The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is preparing to deploy about 250 federal agents to Louisiana as part of a large-scale operation that could last two months and aims to arrest about 5,000 people in the southeastern part of the state and part of southern Mississippi.
The operation, known internally as “Swamp Sweep,” was disclosed through documents obtained by The Associated Press and sources with direct knowledge of the planning.
Swamp Sweep operation prepared
According to these documents, the deployment would formally begin on December 1, 2025, although the first agents will arrive in New Orleans days before Thanksgiving to prepare vehicles, tactical equipment and command centers.
The operation comes on top of other extensive raids recently in cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles and Charlotte, where President Donald Trump’s administration has stepped up detention operations as part of its national strategy to make good on a promise to increase mass deportations.
Louisiana is currently governed by Republican Jeff Landry, one of President Trump’s closest allies.
His state administration has shown a willingness to coordinate stricter immigration policies aligned with federal objectives.
However, the operation will take place primarily in New Orleans, a city with more liberal local leadership that has resisted, for years, fully cooperating with immigration raids and operations.
This anticipates a clash between federal and local authorities, something that has already been seen in other jurisdictions.
Who is leading the operation?
Responsible for coordinating Operation Swamp Sweep is Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol commander who has become one of the key figures in mass detention operations during the Trump Administration.
His record has come under severe criticism: in Chicago, a federal judge publicly reprimanded him for presenting misleading information about alleged threats from protesters and for the unjustified use of tear gas and pepper bullets.
His team also led aggressive operations in Los Angeles and more recently in Charlotte, where agents searched for immigrants including churches, supermarkets and residential complexes.
The choice of Bovino to lead the operation in Louisiana confirms that the federal government sees this area as a critical point to reinforce its arrest policy.
Where will the agents operate?
In order to be able to operate on a large scale, the federal authorities are setting up several logistics centers:
Part of the FBI’s New Orleans office will function as a command center.
A naval base south of the city will be used to store vehicles, equipment and thousands of “less lethal” munitions, such as tear gas and pepper bullets.
DHS also requested the use of the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans for up to 90 days.
