Syracuse, N.Y. — Gov. Kathy Hochul today condemned the detention of two SUNY Upstate Medical University employees by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Hochul said she recently met with the families of the two men and representatives of their unions. The families were also able to visit the men at the federal immigration detention center in Batavia, she said.

Hochul was in Syracuse to campaign for Sharron Owens, who is running for mayor .

Both men are from Cuba. They were taken into custody Wednesday when they went to a hearing at ICE’s Mattydale offices, according to their unions.

The men work in the environmental services department at the state-run hospital in Syracuse. They have been employed by New York state since 2022 and 2024, according to the Civil Service Employees

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