LA ICE Raids Targeted Immigrants With Criminal Histories: Feds

LOS ANGELES, CA — The vast majority of the Los Angeles-area immigrants rounded up in a series of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids Thursday had serious criminal histories, federal officials announced Friday, countering activists' claims that those targeted posed little threat to the community.

According to ICE officials, 150 of the 160 immigrants rounded up in the region had criminal histories.

“Many of the arrestees had prior felony convictions for serious or violent offenses, such as child sex crimes, weapons charges, and assault,” according to a statement put out by the agency.

Among the arrested were nationals from a dozen countries, and 95 percent were male, ICE officials said.

In Los Angeles, agents arrested:

• A Salvadoran national MS-13 member arrested in Huntington Park who is wanted in his native country for aggravated extortion;
• A Brazilian national arrested in Los Angeles who is wanted in Brazil for cocaine trafficking; and
• An Australian national taken into custody in West Hollywood who was previously convicted of lewd and lascivious acts with a child.

In countering claims by activists that the immigrants were primarily non-criminal immigrants who had unsuccessfully applied for refugee status, the ICE statements appeared aimed at quelling rising panic in the community that the Trump administration is targeting immigrants who pose little threat to the community.

"The rash of recent reports about purported ICE checkpoints and random sweeps are false, dangerous and irresponsible," according to ICE. "These reports create panic and put communities and law enforcement personnel in unnecessary danger. Individuals who falsely report such activities are doing a disservice to those they claim to support."

Activists and some elected officials, however, expressed fear that the recent actions represented a stepped-up enforcement effort by immigration authorities.

One woman, Marlene Mosqueda, told reporters Friday morning her father was taken away Thursday by authorities who weren't wearing clothing identifying them as ICE officers, and he was deported.

"They took my parents away," she said. "They took my family away."

Some elected officials criticized the immigration actions.

"President Trump has already ignited widespread fear and confusion in our immigrant communities with his executive order and divisive campaign rhetoric," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat from California. "If the reports are accurate, these raids only add to the anxiety about what's to come from this administration."

Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, a Democrat from Los Angeles, said she was "outraged" at news of the recent raids and suggested that some people who were targeted had no violent or criminal history.

"I am working with my constituents and the immigrant community to ensure they know their rights," she said. "As this process moves forward, I will also ensure my constituents know what the next steps are, where applicable."

"This is un-American," Sen. Kevin de Leon, a Democrat from Los Angeles, said Thursday before ICE officials released information about the immigrants arrested. "It's not who we are."

Rep. Tony Cardenas, a Democrat from Panorama City, demanded that ICE officials provide "more information and the purpose of these raids."

On Thursday night, dozens of activists staged a protest in downtown Los Angeles in response to what they described as a series of raids at various Southern California locations, including Van Nuys and Downey. Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles officials contended as many as 100 immigrants were detained by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement.

Responding to what they characterized as a coordinated series of raids targeting people living in the country illegally, members of an activist group Friday began offering hourly training sessions to teach immigrants about their legal rights.

The "Know Your Rights" training sessions are being offered every hour by CHIRLA. The group is also offering immigrants access to attorneys and has set up an informational toll-free hotline at (888) 624-4752 for people to call for assistance.

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City News Service contributed to this report. Image: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement