A man who observed an immigration raid at a Pacoima retail complex claims he was forcibly removed and detained for simply photographing the activities.
On June 19, Arturo Hermosillo, 36, reported seeing federal officials hold several day labourers outside a Lowe’s store.
He was sitting in his van when he spotted an elderly woman laying on the ground. She was a street vendor in the neighbourhood who frequently sold tamales. He became enraged at the sight and began recording the incident with his cellphone.
He yelled at the federal authorities but stayed sat in his van. When the agents noticed Hermosillo filming, they approached him and allegedly informed him that he was blocking the path for an ambulance and that he needed to relocate his vehicle.
Hermosillo stated that he complied but accidentally bumped a vehicle behind him while reversing.
The agents promptly approached Hermosillo’s van, unlocked the door, and requested that he step outside.
“They opened the vehicle and they dragged me out,” Hermosillo said. “I told them I’m not doing anything illegal.”
A bystander captured footage of multiple agents roughly taking Hermosillo from the driver’s seat, grabbing him by the neck, upper body, and legs before pushing him to the ground and handcuffing him.
He was apprehended and placed in a van before being transported to a Department of Homeland Security facility in downtown Los Angeles.
Hermosillo was eventually liberated. He described the ordeal as frustrating because he was not committing a crime.
He believes there is a lack of transparency around federal immigration raids in Southern California.
“We should be able to have open arms for people who want to work,” he said. “These are hard-working people. This is Indigenous land. They belong here, we belong here.”
Hermosillo said government officials informed him that he was being investigated for interfering with federal officers and might face up to six years in prison if convicted.
