LOS ANGELES (CNS) – As a fresh standoff developed Saturday between protesters and armed federal authorities in Paramount, Trump administration officials were vowing to prosecute any demonstrators who broke the law during Friday’s violent demonstrations that accompanied immigration raids in Los Angeles, and accusing Democratic elected officials of fueling lawlessness.
On Saturday morning, a crowd began gathering at the Home Depot at 6400 Alondra Blvd. Citing federal sources, Fox News Channel reported that the Department of Homeland Security has a nearby office in Paramount and was using it as a staging area.
“Protesters found it and began gathering. … CBP and Border Patrol have been brought in to provide security and extra bodies, and a handful of agitators have already been arrested today for allegedly interfering with federal agents,” the cable network reported.
Many in the crowd turned over shopping carts and other objects that were left in the street, while federal authorities in riot gear stood by. The street filled with smoke from tear gas canisters, and at least one protester could be seen on the ground bleeding in news footage, though the nature of the apparent injury wasn’t clear.
The Los Angeles Times reported that one protester set fire to a United States flag.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that deputies were dispatched at about 11 a.m. Saturday to the Home Depot for traffic control and “general public safety” in response to federal activity there.
“ICE has brought their terror tactics and masked agents to #Paramount this morning — in my district,” Rep. Nanette Barragán, D-San Pedro, wrote on X. “This is unacceptable. We will demand answers and accountability. For those out there – please stay safe, protest peacefully, and KNOW YOUR RIGHTS.”
At one point, demonstrators threw objects at a U.S. Marshals Service bus and attempted to stop the bus from moving. A few armed federal agents exited the bus and cleared the protesters and the bus continued.
Employing tear gas, the authorities later moved most of the demonstrators away from the area in front of the Home Depot, scattering them in different directions. They closed the Alondra Boulevard off-ramps from the Long Beach (710) Freeway, and CHP vehicle were blocking the on-ramps to prevent protesters from walking onto the freeway.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn visited the Paramount site Saturday, meeting with Mayor Peggy Lemons, Vice Mayor Brenda Olmos and sheriff’s and fire department personnel.
“I’ll continue to monitor the situation,” Hahn posted on X. “Our sheriff’s deputies and fire department personnel stand ready to support our city partners and to help keep people safe. I’m calling on everyone exercising their right to protest to remain peaceful.”
The protest was still ongoing as of Saturday afternoon.
U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks said “several arrests have already been made for assault on a federal agent. ANY attack on our agents or officers will not be tolerated. You will be arrested and federally prosecuted.”
Fox11 reporter Matthew Seedorff posted a video on X showing one of the station’s news vehicles with slashed tires and smashed windows. Seedorff also said items were stolen from the vehicle.
Dan Bongino, the deputy director of the FBI, said the agency was seeking to identify a person in a yellow helmet seen in a video throwing rocks at vehicles trying to leave the scene in Paramount.
“One of the perpetrators in this video is wearing a helmet, and we’re going to use our investigative tools to locate the individual,” he said. “I strongly suggest you turn yourself in, it’s only a matter of time.”
The video can be seen at x.com/TheKevinDalton/status/1931436114411413620.
At a hastily arranged afternoon news conference in Paramount, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna called for calm.
“We will protect your right to peacefully protest, but we cannot and will not tolerate violence or destruction of property,” Luna said.
“I know that there’s a lot going on in last 24 hours regarding immigration and concerns, and all I ask our community to do here in Los Angeles (is to) approach it in a different way without using violence … I do not sanction attacks on federal officers. That is not good for any of us,” he added.
Luna also reiterated his statement Friday that the LASD does not take part in any immigration actions, but does provide crowd control when needed.
Paramount Mayor Peggy Lemons said the federal action there was “not something city officials were aware of … it is my understanding this was just a situation of staging and that actually wasn’t a raid … There have been to our knowledge no raids within the city of Paramount.”
Meanwhile, federal authorities were assailing the actions of Friday’s demonstrators, as criticizing the words of the many elected officials who expressed outrage at the raids. The day-long series of immigration enforcement actions across downtown Los Angeles saw nearly four dozen arrests following clashes with federal agents.
“What took place in Los Angeles yesterday was appalling,” Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Todd M. Lyons said in a statement Saturday. “As rioters attacked federal ICE and law enforcement officers on the LA streets, Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement.
“Our brave officers were vastly outnumbered, as over 1,000 rioters surrounded and attacked a federal building. It took over two hours for the Los Angeles Police Department to respond, despite being called multiple times. The brave men and women of ICE were in Los Angeles arresting criminal illegal aliens including gang members, drug traffickers and those with a history of assault, cruelty to children, domestic violence, robbery, and smuggling.
“These violent rioters will be held accountable if they harm federal officers, and make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens. Sanctuary politicians would do well to remember that impeding our efforts only endangers their communities, law enforcement officers, and the detainees they claim to support.”
The raids began Friday morning as agents from what appeared to be multiple federal law enforcement agencies could be seen escorting men in handcuffs into vehicles outside a Home Depot at 1675 Wilshire Blvd. in the Westlake District.
“ICE officers and agents alongside partner law enforcement agencies, executed four federal search warrants at three locations in central Los Angeles,” Yasmeen Pitts O’Keefe of Homeland Security Investigations said later in a statement to CBS2. “Approximately 44 people were administratively arrested [with] one arrest for obstruction.”
O’Keefe told the Los Angeles Times that search warrants were served regarding illegal immigrants and anyone harboring them.
Later Friday morning, another raid took place at an Ambiance clothing store on Towne Avenue in the Fashion District near downtown. A crowd of people, and some protesters, gathered outside the store as the operation was being carried out, most of them taking photos or videos. Several people wearing FBI vests were seen standing by outside the store.
Several hours after the raids began, what appeared to be at least two dozen people were led out of a Fashion District building in handcuffs and loaded into white vans and driven away, escorted by federal law enforcement personnel in the street in tactical gear. Some spectators could be seen throwing objects at the vans, while others ran into the street.
At one point, a protester placed his hands on a white SUV that was being driven from the scene and tried to maneuver in front of the vehicle, but fell to the ground and was nearly run over. The driver of the SUV came to a quick stop, then backed up and sped away.
Early Friday afternoon, a throng of federal agents amassed at what appeared to be an Ambiance clothing warehouse or corporate headquarters building near 15th Street and Santa Fe Avenue in the South Los Angeles area. One person wearing a Drug Enforcement Administration vest was seen at that location.
Undocumented immigrants often gather at stores such as Home Depot and Ambiance looking for temporary work. There were also reports of additional raids being carried out Friday in areas such as Pico-Union and Cypress Park.
Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the federal building in downtown Los Angeles on Friday evening and began a march through the area to denounce the raids. The Metropolitan Detention Center was sprayed with graffiti by protesters.
Video from outside the center, taken by Anthony Cabassa, who describes himself as an “independent journalist,” showed a protester clad in all- black and wearing a mask over his mouth using a hammer on a cement block.
Pictures of graffiti on and near the jail taken by Cabassa included the phrases, “Death to Amerikka” and “Dead Cops.”
Around 7 p.m. Friday, the LAPD declared an unlawful assembly on Alameda Street between Aliso and Temple streets, warning that individuals who remain in the area were subject to arrest. Two hours later, the department issued a citywide tactical alert, requiring all officers to remain on duty after their shifts end due to the protests in downtown Los Angeles.
The raids were part of President Donald Trump’s continuing crackdown on illegal immigration. Since Trump took office in January, many such raids have been conducted across the country, sparking protests from Democrats and some legal challenges. Opponents accuse the administration of going too far, using heavy-handed militaristic tactics and targeting some legal immigrants as well.
Data show that illegal birder crossings have dropped to historic lows in recent months.
“As mayor of a proud city of immigrants, I am outraged by what has taken place and I’m appalled at the chaos that has ensued,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said. “These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. It makes people fearful to attend school, workplaces, houses of worship, community spaces and so much more.”
Bass said she had met with families impacted by the raids and vowed that “LA will always stand with them and stand for what is right.”
The mayor said she plans to hold a meeting Monday with local immigrant- rights organizations to discuss the raids.
Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy, homeland security advisor and a graduate of Santa Monica High School, wrote on social media in response to Bass’ comment, “You have no say in this at all. Federal law is supreme and federal law will be enforced.”
“The violent targeting of law enforcement in Los Angeles by lawless protestors is despicable,” the Department of Homeland Security posted on X Saturday morning, along with video showing demonstrators damaging buildings and leaving behind graffiti. “These men and women work every day, putting their lives on the line, to protect and defend the lives of American citizens.
“Mayor Bass, ICE is not responsible for `sowing a sense of terror’ the protestors YOU enabled are.”
Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Whittier, said some immigrants who were detained were attending routine check-ins with Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building when they were detained.
“This is yet another cruel and deliberate act by the Trump administration in its ongoing campaign to dehumanize immigrants,” she said. “Detaining individuals, some U.S. citizens, for appearing at their immigration hearings — doing exactly what the system demands of them — is a betrayal of justice.
“Immigrants are constantly told: `Follow the rules, do things the right way and you’ll be given an opportunity.’ But now, families who are following the rules are being ambushed, handcuffed and locked away in the basement of a federal building,” she said. “They’re not being punished for breaking the law, but for trusting it. These inhumane actions by ICE upend our centuries-old due process protections and destroy the integrity of our immigration system.”
The Service Employees International Union California issued a statement saying the union’s president, David Huerta, was “injured and detained” during the raids.
Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Los Angeles, said Huerta was arrested at downtown’s Roybal Federal Building.
“Huerta was Tased and brutalized for attempting to visit his union members — asylum applicants going through the immigration process legally who have been unjustly, indefinitely detained and are being held in inhumane conditions,” Kamlager-Dove said.
Huerta later issued a statement while still being treated at a hospital.
“What happened to me is not about me; this is about something much bigger,” he said. “This is about how we as a community stand together and resist the injustice that’s happening. Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals. We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice.”
Rep Judy Chu, D-Monterey Park, said in a statement Saturday that “It is clear that SEIU President David Huerta was exercising his right to observe law enforcement activity and stand with community in peaceful protest to these raids. I stand with David and with immigrant communities across this country, and demand his immediate release along with the release of those detained in the raids.
“I will not allow this administration to tear apart families and terrorize neighborhoods. Immigrants strengthen our nation and every person in this country has a right to due process. We need answers. We need accountability. And we need to put an end to Donald Trump’s inhumane and disgusting attacks on immigrant communities.”
Bill Essayli, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, said “federal agents were executing a lawful judicial warrant at an LA worksite this morning when David Huerta deliberately obstructed their access by blocking their vehicle. He was arrested for interfering with federal officers and will face arraignment in federal court on Monday. Let me be clear: I don’t care who you are — if you impede federal agents, you will be arrested and prosecuted. No one has the right to assault, obstruct, or interfere with federal authorities carrying out their duties.”
Also Saturday, a group of local congressional Democrats said they were blocked from entering the Roybal Building to ensure that the detainees were being treated humanely.
“The reports of what is happening inside the Roybal Federal Building is a complete violation of our laws and a stain on our values as a country,” said Rep. Luz Rivas, D-Arleta, who said that she, Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Los Angeles, Rep. Norma Torres, D-Ontario, and Rep. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana, were denied entrance.
“The Trump administration blocked my colleagues and me from conducting our congressional oversight duties into the reported abuses and neglect that is taking place at this facility. Whether Donald Trump and his administration likes it or not, our job as members of Congress is to shine a light on their actions toward immigrant families — and we will not be deterred. We will continue to use our power to protect our most vulnerable from the inhumane actions of this administration.”
In response to a query from City News Service, an FBI spokeswoman said specific details about immigration operations and arrests must come from Homeland Security Investigations as the lead agency, but she offered the following statement on the FBI’s posture regarding immigration arrests:
“The FBI is supporting our partners at the Department of Homeland Security in their immigration operations all over the country, as directed by the attorney general. The FBI is accustomed to providing investigative and technical assistance to our federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement partners on a regular basis.
“As we have been asked to do, we are sending agents to participate in these immigration enforcement efforts. That includes assisting in cities where major operations are already underway and where we have special agents embedded on operational teams with DHS. Our help may vary depending on what DHS needs, such as SWAT operators, who can support high risk arrest operations, and other resources such as intelligence analysts and technical support working from command posts.”
The FBI’s Bongino said in a social media post Saturday that “The Right to assemble and protest does not include a license to attack law enforcement officers, or to impede and obstruct our lawful immigration operations. We are thoroughly reviewing the evidence from yesterday’s incident in Los Angeles and we are working with the US Attorney’s Office to ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice. The days of chaos ruling the streets are over. Either obey the law, or go to jail, there’s no third option.”
And Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told Fox News Saturday that “I believe that we will press charges against everybody who has broken the law last night.”
“We’ll continue to do our ICE operations, we’ll continue to make sure everybody in this country has the law equally applied to them,” Noem said, adding: “Freedom works when everybody has justice applied equally to them.”
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said his officers had nothing to do with Friday’s raids.
“The LAPD became aware that ICE was conducting operations in the city of Los Angeles. I’m aware that these actions cause anxiety for many Angelenos, so I want to make it clear: The LAPD is not involved in civil immigration enforcement. While the LAPD will continue to have a visible presence in all our communities to ensure public safety, we will not assist or participate in any sort of mass deportations, nor will the LAPD try to determine an individual’s immigration status.
“Since 1979, our policy has barred officers from initiating police action solely to determine a person’s immigration status. The department remains focused on critical issues like crime reduction, enhancing public safety, and improving the quality of life for all Angelenos.”
Angélica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, said there were at least seven immigration raids held across the region Friday, many of them at workplaces, including a doughnut shop. She said 45 people were detained in the various operations.
She characterized the raids as “random sweeps” conducted without warrants, and those arrested were simply racially profiled. “Our community is under attack and has been terrorized,” Salas told the crowd of protesters, according to the Times. “These are workers, these are fathers, these are mothers.”
At the end of Friday’s Los Angeles City Council meeting, Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez said her office had received reports throughout the morning “about swift and aggressive immigration raids and enforcement.”
“My team and I have been in contact with community members and rapid response organizers since early this morning in my district,” Hernandez said. “… L.A. is a sanctuary city, and we’ve made it clear that we will not cooperate [or] use our resources for ICE and federal immigration enforcement, but that doesn’t stop them from showing up. Now, we’re seeing their tactics quickly escalate.
“They’re swooping in fast, without warning and leaving just as quickly. They don’t hang around because they know we mobilize. Our resistance is working, and that’s exactly why they have elevated their approach and changed their approach, colleagues.”
Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis called the actions “deeply disturbing.”
“The individuals detained are hardworking Angelenos who contribute to our local economy and labor force every day,” Solis said. “It is also horrifying that ICE targeted Skid Row to intimidate some of our most vulnerable residents. Trump said he would go after criminals, not innocent hardworking people contributing to our economy and supporting their families.”
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