US Border Patrol chief quits, adding to turnover among immigration officials

WASHINGTON, May 14 – U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks abruptly resigned on Thursday, an agency spokesperson said, adding to turnover in recent months among top immigration officials in President Donald Trump’s administration.

No reason was given for the departure of Banks, the top official at the agency tasked with securing U.S. borders. Banks was allied with former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who Trump fired in March, two former Border Patrol officials said. Banks did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Banks, who was named to the role by Trump in January 2025, had worked for Border Patrol for two decades before leaving it in 2023 to become “border czar” for the Republican-led state of Texas.

His departure comes at a time of declining U.S. public support for Trump’s immigration strategy.

In addition, Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons is departing at the end of the month, controversial Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino retired in March, and White House border czar Tom Homan has assumed expanded authority overseeing enforcement operations.

The administration this week announced that David Venturella, a former immigration official who also worked for the private prison company GEO Group, would replace Lyons.

Trump won reelection in 2024 vowing to clamp down on illegal border crossings after millions of people crossed illegally under his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden. Some 86,000 migrants were arrested at the border during Trump’s first year in office from February 2025 to January 2026, down from 956,000 a year earlier, U.S. government figures show.

In a statement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott thanked Banks for his service “during one of the most challenging periods for border security.”

“During his time as chief, the border was transformed from chaos to the most secure border ever recorded,” said Scott, who heads Border Patrol’s parent agency.

During Banks’ tenure, the Trump administration surged Border Patrol agents into major U.S. cities, where they used aggressive tactics to round up people suspected of immigration violations and clashed with residents.

Banks maintained a low profile during the contentious city-level operations. Bovino prominently led groups of agents through Democratic-governed cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis.

Bovino told Reuters that Banks was aligned with Noem and clashed at times with Scott over enforcement tactics.

“He was the last mass deportation guy,” Bovino said.

In a farewell note to agents, Banks said he would “forever be the greatest defender” of his agency. REUTERS