LOS ANGELES, CA — A masked federal immigration agent shoved a man walking his dogs into bushes and pointed a gun inches from his face during an arrest in North Hollywood Friday, sparking outrage and calls for an investigation, according to reports.
The confrontation occurred around 8:30 a.m. near Vineland Place and Otsego Street, where U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were taking a man into custody, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Video of the incident shows agents dragging the detained man along a sidewalk as a bystander walking two dogs watches nearby. When one agent dropped a canister of pepper spray, the bystander picked it up and tossed it toward the street, according to the Times.
An agent then rushed toward the bystander, pushed him into bushes and pointed a handgun inches from his face before backing away and holstering the weapon, KTLA reported.
The bystander later told Los Angeles City Councilmember Adrin Nazarian that he had been trying to help the man being detained retrieve items he had dropped during the arrest. He said an agent also pepper-sprayed him, according to the Times.
Witnesses described the encounter as frightening.
"He dragged him like a dog, like with no respect for the man," witness Joseph Cevallos told Fox 11, referring to the man being arrested.
The Department of Homeland Security defended the agents' actions, telling the Times that officers were arresting a man who had a final deportation order and had fled from his vehicle.
The agency accused the bystander of creating a dangerous situation by handling the pepper spray canister.
"Officers relied on their training and took all available measures to safely secure the scene, controlling both individuals, who had created chaos, without further incident," a DHS spokesperson told the Times.
However, law enforcement experts who reviewed the video questioned the agent's decision to point a gun at the bystander after he had thrown the canister away.
Seth Stoughton, a University of South Carolina law professor and former police officer, told the Times that the agent's response was inappropriate.
"I can understand agents not wanting a bystander to have a canister of pepper spray, but at the point the agent pointed his weapon at the guy, he's tossed it quite a distance," Stoughton said.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass condemned the encounter as "unacceptable" and said she was contacting the California Attorney General's Office to seek an investigation into potential wrongdoing by federal agents, KTLA reported.
Bass also said she referred the incident to U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat overseeing federal immigration enforcement, according to the Times.
Councilmember Nithya Raman also criticized the operation, calling the agents' conduct outrageous.
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