Immigration raids in Los Angeles have not ceased this Friday, despite the demonstrations unleashed after the death of a day laborer who jumped into freeway traffic upon seeing the presence of agents at a Home Depot store.
The Union del Barrio collective reported the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement(ICE) in multiple locations in Los Angeles, including the San Gabriel Valley, where an immigrant died Thursday after being struck by a vehicle.
Monrovia police responded to an emergency call Thursday morning for an ICE raid at a Home Depot. During the raid, a man fled onto the 210 Freeway and was struck by a vehicle, and was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) reported.
Pablo Alvarado, director of the National Day Laborers Network (NDLON), described the man as a hard-working person, who was only looking out for his family.
The Department of Homeland Security explained in a statement that none of the immigration agents pursued the man, and that they learned of his death after the operation, which resulted in the arrest of 12 people, was completed.
A vigil will be held this Friday afternoon at the site where the raid occurred.
Alvarado condemned the return of immigration raids, despite a court order prohibiting indiscriminate arrests.
The raids have intensified in the last week at Home Depot stores. On August 6, ICE agents arrived hidden in a rented moving truck and were able to arrest 16 workers from Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala in front of a day labor center last Wednesday.
The raid was conducted despite a temporary order issued by a judge that prohibits Immigration agents from detaining individuals without reasonable suspicion and based solely on apparent race or ethnicity; speaking Spanish or English with an accent; presence at a specific location; or the type of work the person performs, in at least seven counties in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.
The day laborer’s death follows that of farm worker Jaime Alanís García, 57, who died after falling from a height of about 9 meters while trying to flee from immigration agents during a raid on a farm in Oxnard, California, according to EFE.
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