Trojan Horse Ice Deportation Raids!
Los Angeles, US, Aug 6 (EFE).-
Around 16 people were arrested Wednesday in a surprise immigration raid in Los Angeles, where United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents hid in a rented moving truck and ambushed immigrant day laborers outside a Home Depot store.
The controversial operation, dubbed “Trojan Horse,” occurred despite a federal court order prohibiting arbitrary arrests in Southern California.
The operation was captured on video by a FOX reporter who was inside the truck, rented from the company Penske.
The footage shows agents suddenly jumping out and chasing individuals offering day labor outside the Home Depot in Westlake, a predominantly immigrant neighborhood near MacArthur Park.
A Hispanic witness told the media outlets that the truck driver spoke in Spanish, claiming to need workers.
When several men approached, masked agents leapt from the back of the vehicle and made arrests.
Activist group Unión del Barrio later posted a video showing agents returning to the truck after the raid and driving away.
Penske distanced itself from the operation, stating it had no prior knowledge that the truck was being used for immigration enforcement.
Operation defies court-ordered protections
Last month, a federal judge issued a temporary injunction barring immigration officers from stopping individuals.
The judge banned them without reasonable suspicion and relying on racial profiling, language, or job type as the sole basis for detention in at least seven counties across the Los Angeles metropolitan area.
The order was upheld by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals just last week.
Still, acting US Attorney Bill Essayli defended the raid, writing on X: “To those who thought immigration enforcement had stopped in Southern California, think again.”
He added that federal law enforcement “is not negotiable” and there are no sanctuary zones immune from its reach.
Community, legal response and gang allegations
According to DHS statements to FOX, the raid targeted alleged members of the MS-13 gang.
But civil rights attorney Mark Rosenbaum, from Public Counsel and part of the legal team that sued the United States President Donald Trump administration, condemned the action.
“In Los Angeles, the American people were lied to,” Rosenbaum told local media. “The White House claimed they were targeting murderers and drug dealers, but this operation proves otherwise.”
Ron Gochez, spokesperson for Unión del Barrio, warned the community: “These raids may have decreased, but they haven’t stopped. We must stay alert; only organized communities can defend themselves.”
The raid came just two days after civil rights lawyers urged LA residents to report potential violations by immigration officers and remain vigilant. EFE
