LOS ANGELES (AP) — A U.S. citizen was arrested during a federal immigration raid at a Home Depot store in Los Angeles, drawing widespread concern after federal agents reportedly drove off with the man's car while his 1-year-old daughter remained inside.
A video shared by immigrant advocates shows armed agents approaching the man in a parking lot, leading him away from his vehicle. After the arrest, the agents were seen getting into the front seats of the car, leaving the frightened child in the back seat.
The father, who remains unidentified but is known to live in California, was taken into custody while five other individuals were arrested on immigration charges. According to Lindsay Toczylowski, co-founder of the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, the agency was contacted immediately by community members looking to assist the family.
“It was a dangerous act to have armed men get in a car with that child and remove her from the situation,” Toczylowski stated. Relatives were later able to retrieve the child from federal offices in Los Angeles the same day.
The Department of Homeland Security did not provide immediate comments regarding the decision to take the child with the captured vehicle.
The arrest, part of broader immigration enforcement actions, has left the child's family shaken. Maria, the child's grandmother, stated they received an unexpected call to pick up the girl, who is now reportedly asking for her father. Both she and her granddaughter are U.S. citizens.
“It’s something very frightening,” Maria expressed, conveying her distress watching the video. “You don’t know who those people are.”
