Under odd-sounding circumstances, and rather than calmly visit the man at his home, knock on the door, and present a warrant, ICE decided to stage a dangerous gang-style abduction in the middle of a city street.
It feels unlikely that a protester punched a CBP officer in the face, in front of a crowd of hyped up CBP officers looking for a fight, and then peacefully departed, only to require ramming and a PIT maneuver later, to extract him from his car in a hail of pepper projecticles, flash bangs and smoke. This endangered "the suspect," his wife, and child, and a lot of people on the street. Having nabbed the target, the LA Times reports ICE then left the scene a chaotic mess, which seems more the point.
John Lopez was working at City of Angels Fire Protection on Whittier Boulevard this morning when he saw what appeared to be a car crash in front of the store. Outside, he saw a car pinned between two trucks and a plume of unidentifiable smoke rise from behind the car.
"I thought at first it might be ICE, but I didn't think it could be because they wouldn't do that for normal civilians, like, pin them," Lopez said. "There were kids involved inside that car, and it is scary to think about," Lopez said.
Witnesses say during the arrest, officials dispersed a "chemical-smelling" smoke near the vehicle while the woman and child were still inside. It is unclear what the smoke was.
The woman in the vehicle with Cerno-Camacho exited with her child and ran into a nearby grocery store.
A man who works at that store, who asked not to be named, said she and her child were holed up for nearly three hours before being picked up by family.
LA Times
On a social media account, Homeland Security claims the arrested protester punched a cop at the protest, but he somehow got away, requiring this display of force in a neighborhood. They are also very threatening in this message, promising violence in response to unlikely sounding assaults. I hope the video from the many, many sources, including body cams, is soon made available.
Previously:
• Theater to normalize a military presence in Los Angeles (video)
• Terrorized by Trump: Los Angeles tourism down 61%
