Did Hilton Hotels Cancel Reservations for ICE Agents in Minneapolis? Here's What They're Saying

The Hilton Hotels brand has been immersed in controversy amid reports that one of their hotels cancelled reservations made by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

However, the hotel brand has denied involvement with the situation and is instead shifting blame to a hospitality group that manages a Hampton Inn in Lakeville, Minn., a city located near Minneapolis, where ICE is conducting immigration enforcement.

Here’s what you need to know and who has said what about the situation.

Keep reading to find out more…

On Monday, Jan. 5, the Department of Homeland Security slammed the Hilton brand in a statement on X, writing, “NO ROOM AT THE INN!”

“@HiltonHotels has launched a coordinated campaign in Minneapolis to REFUSE service to DHS law enforcement,” the post continued. “When officers attempted to book rooms using official government emails and rates, Hilton Hotels maliciously CANCELLED their reservations.”

DHS referred to the behavior as “UNACCEPTABLE,” writing, “Why is Hilton Hotels siding with murderers and rapists to deliberately undermine and impede DHS law enforcement from their mission to enforce our nation’s immigration laws?”

The post included alleged screenshots of email correspondence, seemingly between agents and staff at the Hampton Inn.

“We have noticed an influx of GOV reservations made today that have been for DHS, and we are not allowed any ICE or immigration agents to stay at our property. If you are with DHS or immigration, let us know as we will have to cancel your reservation,” one email read.

A follow-up, reportedly sent roughly two hours later, appeared to cancel the reservation.

“After further investigation online, we have found information about immigration work connected with your name and we will be cancelling your upcoming reservation,” the email read in part.

ICE shared the same correspondence on X, where they also wrote, “Hey @Hilton Hotels — why did your team in Minneapolis cancel our federal law enforcement officer and agents’ reservations?”

According to reporting by USA Today, the hotel in question was operated by Everpeak Hospitality and was an independently franchise that was part of the Hilton chain.

In a statement the outlet published, a representative wrote that the organization “moved swiftly to address this matter as it was inconsistent with our policy of being a welcoming place for all.”

“We are in touch with the impacted guests to ensure they are accommodated. We do not discriminate against any individuals or agencies and apologize to those impacted,” the statement read. “We are committed to welcoming all guests and operating in accordance with brand standards, applicable laws, and our role as a professional hospitality provider.”

However, the claims were called into question by Tricia McLaughlin, the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

On X, she questioned Everpeak, writing, “I wonder how Everpeak Hospitality has ‘moved swiftly to address this matter’ when @DHSgov and @ICEgov haven’t heard anything from them?”

She then re-shared a video posted by conservative media figure Nick Sortor, in which he seemingly attempted to make a reservation at the hotel in question as a member of DHS.

“Worth noting this occurred many hours after Everpeak Hospitality and
@HiltonHotels issued statements insisting this issue was resolved,” she wrote.

Amid ongoing questions, Hilton Hotels issued a statement in which they said they planned to cut ties with Everpeak moving forward.

“The independent hotel owner had assured us that they had fixed this problem and published a message confirming this. A recent video clearly raises concerns that they are not meeting our standards and values. As such, we are taking immediate action to remove this hotel from our systems,” the statement read. “Hilton is – and has always been – a welcoming place for all. We are also engaging with all of our franchisees to reinforce the standards we hold them to across our system to help ensure this does not happen again.”

ICE’s presence in Minnesota comes amid President Donald Trump‘s strict enforcement of immigration laws and follows similar actions in cities such as Chicago.

According to reporting by CNN, the administration is sending roughly 2,000 agents to the area.

PEOPLE reached out to Hilton Hotels, ICE and DHS for additional comment but did not hear back at the time of publication. Contact information for Everpeak was not immediately available.

If you missed it, a late-night TV host recently thanked the president after winning a big award.