Federal ICE Raids in Los Angeles Detain 44, Spark Clashes and Citywide Unrest (Photo: Luke Harold/Wikimedia Commons/Public domain)

Federal immigration agents conducted a series of aggressive, military-style raids across Los Angeles on Friday, arresting at least 44 individuals and triggering widespread protests that culminated in a violent standoff with riot police downtown. The operation, executed without prior notice or judicial warrants, drew swift condemnation from local officials and civil rights groups, who accused the Trump administration of deploying excessive force and terrorizing immigrant communities.

Unmarked federal vehicles, drones, and tactical units from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and the DEA moved into multiple locations across the city, including the Westlake District, Fashion District, and South Los Angeles. The raids targeted individuals suspected of immigration violations and the use of fraudulent documents, according to ICE statements and legal observers.

Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, stated that her organization documented enforcement activity at seven sites. These included two Home Depot locations, a doughnut shop, day labor centers, and the clothing wholesaler Ambiance Apparel. “These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement on X.

Friday’s sweep, part of the Trump administration’s broader crackdown on undocumented immigrants, prompted hundreds to gather outside the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building, where some detainees were reportedly being processed. Protesters blocked entrances, spray-painted anti-ICE slogans, and attempted to obstruct ICE vehicles, prompting the LAPD to declare an unlawful assembly just after 7 p.m.

Helmeted officers in riot gear used tear gas, pepper spray, and “less-lethal munitions” to disperse the crowds. LAPD spokesperson Drake Madison confirmed that flash-bang devices were deployed, and a citywide tactical alert was issued, requiring all officers to remain on duty.

Among those arrested was David Huerta, president of SEIU California, who, according to the union, was injured “”while exercising his First Amendment right to observe and document law enforcement activity.” Huerta was later treated at Los Angeles General Medical Center before being taken into custody. ICE did not immediately respond to requests for comment on his detention.

While ICE confirmed 44 administrative arrests, advocacy groups contend the true number is higher, with estimates ranging from 70 to 80 detainees. Caleb Soto of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network told Al Jazeera that only three lawyers had been granted access to detainees, complicating legal representation.

Rights groups also alleged that detainees, including children, were held in substandard conditions overnight, without beds, blankets, or adequate food. ICE denied those allegations, telling CBS News it “categorically refutes the assertions made by immigration activists,” and emphasized that it “takes its mandate to care for people in custody seriously.”

The raids drew sharp rebukes from California Governor Gavin Newsom, who labeled the operations “cruel” and “chaotic,” and accused federal authorities of pursuing “an arbitrary arrest quota.” All 15 members of the Los Angeles City Council also issued a joint statement condemning the action.

Inside the White House, however, officials defended the crackdown. Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller criticized Mayor Bass and other local leaders for undermining federal law, signaling continued support for escalated enforcement tactics amid the administration’s broader immigration agenda.

ICE officers try to leave the scene after performing a raid but protesters block their way in Chinatown on Saturday in Los Angeles.

Fallout from a blitzkrieg of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement sweeps in downtown Los Angeles continued Saturday, with fierce pushback from protesters, open sparring between L.A. leadership and federal officials, and a chaotic scene in Paramount as federal officials warned of more arrests to come.

“As Mayor of a proud city of immigrants, who contribute to our city in so many ways, I am deeply angered by what has taken place. These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city,” Mayor Karen Bass posted on X on Friday evening. “We will not stand for this.”

“We will,” FBI Director Kash Patel replied Saturday morning.

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Patel’s response came a day after immigration officials descended on businesses around Los Angeles and arrested 44 people on suspicion of immigration violations and another for obstruction. ICE has arrested a total of 118 people in L.A. in connection with suspected immigration violations this week, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Immigration rights advocates said conditions at the Metropolitan Detention Center downtown had become overcrowded, with 200 people packed into a facility built to hold only 100.

“They didn’t have access to food and water on a schedule. They definitely don’t have access to their medicines,” said U.S. Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles), who arrived at the facility to check conditions Saturday morning along with fellow representatives Luz Rivas (D-North Hollywood), Norma Torres (D-Pomona) and Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana).

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“That’s not healthy for anybody,” Gomez said. “They do have a right to make sure that they’re treated fairly and that they’re allowed to see their attorney. So we’re here because federal law says that we as members of Congress can show up and do a facility check on all those different issues.”

A federal agent turned the lawmakers away and told them to come back on Monday, the group said.

“That is not what the law says,” Rivas told reporters afterward. “We should be allowed any time for an oversight visit, and that was our intention — to come in to check in on the facility and and to get a briefing.”

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As advocates and families of detainees scrambled for information, federal officials made clear Saturday that more arrests were on the way.

“Federal law enforcement operations are proceeding as planned this weekend in Los Angeles County,” U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli said on X. “Anyone who obstructs federal agents will face arrest and prosecution.”

On Friday evening, crowds gathered outside the federal detention center in downtown Los Angeles. The Los Angeles Police Department declared an unlawful assembly and ordered the roughly 200 remaining protesters to disperse around 7 p.m.

Following reports of a small group of “violent individuals” throwing large pieces of concrete at officers, police authorized the use of so-called less-lethal munitions at 8 p.m., LAPD said. A citywide tactical alert was issued shortly thereafter.

As reports of new raids emerged Saturday morning, federal officials criticized protesters’ actions and warned of further consequences.

“The Left’s dangerous rhetoric against brave American law enforcement has fueled hatred and inspired violence. Democrats must immediately call on their supporters to stop the attacks on ICE officers who are simply doing their job — and have every right to do so,” White House spokesperson Abigail Johnson said in a statement. “To those who harm law enforcement officers, know this: you will be held accountable to the full extent of the law.”

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The Department of Homeland Security described the protesters as “violent rioters.”

Advocates have vowed to continue fighting back against the arrests.

“Our community is under attack and has been terrorized,” Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, or CHIRLA, told the crowd of protesters. “These are workers, these are fathers, these are mothers.”

Immigrant rights activists rallied and protested multiple immigration sweeps across Los Angeles on Friday. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

The scene outside one targeted business in the Fashion District turned violent after federal immigration authorities used flash-bang grenades and pepper spray on people protesting the employees’ arrests. Hours later, hundreds rallied outside the Los Angeles Federal Building to condemn the crackdown and demand the release of Service Employees International Union California President David Huerta, who was injured and detained while documenting a raid, according to a statement from the labor union.

Carlos González Gutiérrez, consul general of Mexico in Los Angeles, said his team has identified at least 11 Mexican nationals who were detained during raids across the Southland. The office is offering them legal services, and he said he is monitoring detention conditions.

“The detention center seems to be at full capacity,” he said. “Every cell seems to be occupied.”

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Federal agents executed four search warrants related to the suspected harboring of people illegally in the country at three locations in central Los Angeles, according to ICE.

CHIRLA received more than 50 calls on its hotline, with reports of ICE sightings and men in military garb in parking lots and in locations near schools, Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop, according to Salas.

Connie Chung Joe, the chief executive of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California, said she received a report of immigration enforcement going to a school in Koreatown.

California Multiple immigration sweeps reported across L.A., with a tense standoff downtown Federal agents in riot gear detained workers in the Garment District in downtown Los Angeles as crowds gathered to record them and shout protests.

Huerta, 58, was treated at a hospital and transferred to the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown L.A., where he remained in custody as of 5:30 p.m., according to an SEIU spokesperson.

“What happened to me is not about me; This is about something much bigger,” he said in a statement from the hospital. “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.”

In a statement on X, Essayli alleged that Huerta had deliberately obstructed federal agents’ access to a worksite where they were executing a warrant by blocking their vehicle Friday morning. Huerta was arrested on suspicion of interfering with federal officers and will be arraigned Monday, the U.S. Attorney said.

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Elected officials representing Los Angeles at the city, county, state and federal levels released a flurry of statements condemning Huerta’s arrest, criticizing the raids and decrying the Trump administration’s escalation of deportations.

“This is a democracy,” said L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn. “People have a right to peacefully protest, to observe law enforcement activity, and to speak out against injustice.”

Assistant Atty. Gen. Harmeet Dhillon, who was appointed by President Trump to lead the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, pushed back on Democratic elected leaders’ defense of Huerta.

“There is not a 1st Amendment right to physically obstruct law enforcement officers from executing a duly issued warrant,” Dhillon said.

For several hours Friday, advocates gathered outside Ambiance Apparel’s warehouse shouting legal advice to those being detained inside. They stood on a long bed truck parked in the middle of the street, jamming traffic on the busy road.

People gather in front of Ambiance Apparel after several employees were taken into custody by federal agents on Friday. At one point, federal agents had to shove protesters out of the path of a van that was being driven into the building’s parking lot. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

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“You are not alone,” one said into a megaphone drowning out the sounds of the crowd. “Do not sign anything. Do not tell them where you are from.”

Katina Garcia, 18, pressed her face to the glass, looking for her father, who lacks proper documentation, who had gone to work there that morning, like any other.

“We never thought it would happen to us,” she said, “I’m in disbelief.”

After a couple of hours a legion of federal agents dressed in riot gear descended on Ambiance Apparel to confront more than 100 people who had gathered outside.

Blaring their sirens announced the arrival of armored personnel carriers.

“Pigs,” one man shouted during the raucous scene.

“Fascists,” another said.

The agents disembarked and surrounded the gates protesters had tried to block. Some threw objects at the armed agents, as they yelled and filmed them. To disperse the crowd, pepper spray was used.

The agents who had been inside the store walked out at least a dozen individuals and boarded them in the vans as other agents in riot gear taped off the area.

“How do you sleep at night, tearing apart families,” one woman screamed at an agent. “What if they took your family?”

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The vans filled with migrants left first. Then the line of tactical vehicles and trucks backed out and left in the other direction. The crowd followed, filming with cellphones and surrounding the vehicles for at least a block. The agents used what appeared to be at least a dozen rounds of flash-bang grenades and pepper spray before protesters dispersed.

A group of 11 L.A. city councilmembers released a joint statement lambasting the “indiscriminate targeting of children and families” and vowing to fight to protect immigrants.

“We condemn this in no uncertain terms: Los Angeles was built by immigrants and it thrives because of immigrants,” the group stated. “We will not abide by fear tactics to support extreme political agendas that aim to stoke fear and spread discord in our city.”

The Police Department and the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department said in statements that they will neither participate in any enforcement of civil immigration laws nor seek to determine an individual’s immigration status.

“We want our residents to know that when they call for help, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department will respond, investigate and protect everyone — regardless of a person’s legal status,” the department said in a statement.

The American Civil Liberties Union and elected officials including Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, Councilmember Ysabel Jurado and Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Los Angeles) raised concerns over reports that the LAPD was assisting ICE on Friday. Videos shared on social media showed LAPD officers gathering at 15th Street and Santa Fe Avenue, where a crowd was protesting the immigration action at Ambiance Apparel’s warehouse.

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“When masked goons are abducting and locking Angelenos in basements, when police are tear gassing protesters and legal observers exercising their 1st Amendment rights, and when union leaders are brutalized for daring to oppose blatant injustice, we ask our local and state leaders: Where are you? What will you do to end this madness?” said Andres Kwon, attorney and senior policy counsel at the ACLU Foundation of Southern California.

Kwon said city leaders “broke their promise” to preserve L.A. as a sanctuary city, which LAPD officials denied.

“We received an officer needs help call from our federal partners and responded to separate the parties to maintain order,” said LAPD spokesperson Jennifer Forkish. “We had nothing to do with the operation, but we do have an obligation to respond to any law enforcement agency requesting urgent assistance.”

The Los Angeles raids come on the heels of several recent enforcement actions in the Southland — including an incident in which ICE agents deployed flash-bang grenades during operations at two San Diego restaurants, and a raid at an underground nightclub in Los Angeles where Chinese and Taiwanese nationals were detained.

On Friday afternoon, U.S. Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla — alongside Reps. Scott Peters (D-San Diego) and Juan Vargas (D-San Diego) — demanded an investigation into the tactics used during the San Diego raids.

“This troubling incident is not an isolated case. Rather, it appears to be part of a broader pattern of escalated and theatrical immigration enforcement operations across the country,” the lawmakers stated. “These events raise serious questions about the appropriateness, proportionality, and execution of ICE tactics.”

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Times staff writer Kaitlyn Huamani contributed to this report.

Protesters, federal agents clash after ICE raid in Paramount

Protesters and federal agents clashed on streets near a Home Depot in Paramount after a raid was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Protesters and federal agents clashed on streets near a Home Depot in Paramount after a raid was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Protesters and federal agents clashed on streets near a Home Depot in Paramount after a raid was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Protesters and federal agents clashed on streets near a Home Depot in Paramount after a raid was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

PARAMOUNT, Calif. (KABC) — Protesters and federal agents clashed on streets in Paramount on Saturday morning after a raid was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The confrontation occurred near a Home Depot at 6400 Alondra Boulevard, just east of the 710 Freeway.

Some protesters turned over shopping carts and other objects in the street, and U.S. Border Patrol agents wearing gas masks were present at the scene.

Flash-bang smoke grenades were deployed, but it was unclear by whom. At least one protester was injured.

Saturday’s incident in Paramount comes the day after federal immigration authorities arrested more than 40 people across Los Angeles, as protesters gathered Friday outside a federal detention center demanding their release before police in riot gear tossed tear gas canisters to disperse the crowd.

ICE officers executed search warrants at multiple locations, including outside a clothing warehouse where a tense scene unfolded as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away. Sirens blared as protesters surrounded black SUVs and tactical vehicles. Officers threw flash bangs into the street to disperse people as they shouted and filmed the scene with their cell phones. One demonstrator tried to physically stop a vehicle from leaving.

Forty-four people were arrested on immigration violations across multiple locations, said Yasmeen Pitts O’Keefe, a spokesperson for Homeland Security Investigations. The president of SEIU California, a major labor union, was arrested and charged for impeding a federal agent while protesting, the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the activity was meant to “sow terror” in the nation’s second-largest city.

Federal immigration authorities have been ramping up arrests across the country to fulfill President Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations. Todd Lyons, the head of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, defended his tactics earlier this week against criticism that authorities are being too heavy-handed. He has said ICE is averaging about 1,600 arrests per day and that the agency has arrested “dangerous criminals.”

Police officers in Los Angeles, California, used flash-bang grenades to disperse a crowd protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids on Friday (June 6). The protests erupted following a series of ICE operations that led to the detention of at least 44 individuals suspected of immigration violations, according to NewsNation.

The protests began after federal agents conducted raids at several locations, including a Home Depot in the Westlake District and a clothing store in the Fashion District. Protesters clashed with agents, leading to tense standoffs. The situation escalated when the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) declared an unlawful assembly and authorized the use of less-lethal munitions, including flash-bang grenades and tear gas, to disperse the crowd.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the raids and subsequent protests drew sharp criticism from local leaders. Mayor Karen Bass expressed anger over the raids, stating, “These tactics sow terror in our communities.” Meanwhile, David Huerta, president of the Service Employees International Union California, was arrested during the protests for allegedly obstructing federal officers. His arrest was condemned by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who called Huerta “a respected leader, a patriot, and an advocate for working people.”

The protests highlight ongoing tensions between local communities and federal immigration enforcement. As federal officials continue their operations, community advocates vow to resist what they describe as unjust actions against immigrants. The investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, a division of ICE, remains ongoing.

Police officers in Los Angeles, California, used flash-bang grenades to disperse a crowd protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids on Friday (June 6). The protests erupted following a series of ICE operations that led to the detention of at least 44 individuals suspected of immigration violations, according to NewsNation.

The protests began after federal agents conducted raids at several locations, including a Home Depot in the Westlake District and a clothing store in the Fashion District. Protesters clashed with agents, leading to tense standoffs. The situation escalated when the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) declared an unlawful assembly and authorized the use of less-lethal munitions, including flash-bang grenades and tear gas, to disperse the crowd.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the raids and subsequent protests drew sharp criticism from local leaders. Mayor Karen Bass expressed anger over the raids, stating, “These tactics sow terror in our communities.” Meanwhile, David Huerta, president of the Service Employees International Union California, was arrested during the protests for allegedly obstructing federal officers. His arrest was condemned by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who called Huerta “a respected leader, a patriot, and an advocate for working people.”

The protests highlight ongoing tensions between local communities and federal immigration enforcement. As federal officials continue their operations, community advocates vow to resist what they describe as unjust actions against immigrants. The investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, a division of ICE, remains ongoing.