DHS blasts Hilton Hotels over canceled hotel reservation

Department of Homeland Security dropped the bomb on Monday Hilton HotelsDHS officials said their reservations were suddenly canceled by a hotel in Minneapolis due to their work on immigration enforcement.

The price of Hilton shares fell nearly 2% following criticism from DHS in a social media post.

DHS, “NO ROOM AT THE INN!” he said X is on social media account.

“Hilton Hotels In Minneapolis, DHS launched a coordinated campaign to REFUSE law enforcement services,” the tweet said.

“When officials attempted to book rooms using official government emails and rates, Hilton Hotels maliciously CANCELED their reservations,” DHS said. “This is UNACCEPTABLE. Why are Hilton Hotels siding with murderers and rapists to deliberately undermine and hinder the mission of DHS law enforcement to enforce our nation’s immigration laws?”

The tweet included screenshots of two emails from Hilton.com with the subject line saying “Upcoming booking.”

“We noticed an influx of GOV bookings for DHS today and do not allow any ICE or immigration agents to remain at our facility,” the email said. “If you are at DHS or immigration, let us know because we will have to cancel your reservation.”

“Please forward this information to your colleagues, we do not allow any immigration agents to establish themselves on our property,” he said in the email.

The next email said: “After further research online, we have found information about immigration studies linked to your name and will be canceling your upcoming booking.”

The location of the Hilton facility where DHS said it canceled the reservation was not disclosed by the department.

“This hotel is independently owned and operated and these actions do not reflect Hilton values,” Hilton said in a statement from a spokesperson.

“We contacted the hotel directly and apologized for their team’s behavior that was not in line with their policies. They took immediate action to resolve this matter and are contacting affected guests to ensure their stay. Hilton’s position is clear: Our properties are open to everyone and we do not tolerate discrimination of any kind,” the statement said.

Many of the more than 9,000 properties affiliated with Hilton and its brands are operated by franchisees.

Everpeak Hospitality, the company that operates the Hilton branded hotel in question, also published a statement.

“Everpeak Hospitality took swift action to address this matter because it was inconsistent with our policy of being a welcoming place for everyone,” the statement said. “We are in communication with affected guests to accommodate them for their stay. We do not discriminate against any person or entity and do not apologize to those affected. We are committed to welcoming all guests and operating in accordance with brand standards, applicable laws and our role as a professional accommodation provider.”

CNBC has reached out to DHS for comment.

During the first Trump administration in September 2020, Hilton released a statement He said he opposed the use of his hotels to detain immigrants, including minors. The announcement comes two months after Hilton said it had confirmed reports that the independently owned and operated Hampton Inn & Suites in McAllen, Texas, had accepted reservations from a private contractor working on behalf of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to house immigrants, including minors.

“This is not an activity we support or want to be associated with our hotels in any way,” Hilton said in July 2020. “Our policy has always been that hotels should not be used as detention centers or to detain individuals. We expect all Hilton properties to reject businesses that would use a hotel in this manner.”

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a tweet on December 29: “Homeland Security Investigations @ICEGov They are currently conducting a major investigation into child care and other common scams in Minneapolis. More to come.”

A. federal prosecutor in Minnesota He said last month that nearly $9 billion or more paid through more than a dozen state Medicaid programs since 2018 may have been obtained fraudulently.

CBS News Monday’s report included the following statements: “The Trump administration has begun a massive deployment of hundreds of Department of Homeland Security agents to the Twin Cities area as it intensifies federal pressure.” Fraud scandal grows In Minnesota.”

“The crackdown could involve approximately 2,000 agents and officers from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportation branch and Homeland Security Investigations,” CBS reported.

— CNBC’s Jim Forkin contributed to this article.