Latest news with #GregoryBovino
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Border Patrol carries out raid at Home Depot parking lot 600 miles from US-Mexico border
Border agents arrested at least 11 people during a Thursday raid outside a northern California Home Depot — including a U.S. citizen who was volunteering as an observer, according to local activists. The operation, which took place in the Sacramento area, nearly 600 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border, is the latest show of force from the Border Patrol in the state, which joined a full-cavalry raid in a Los Angeles park earlier this month. 'There is no such thing as a sanctuary city,' Border Patrol El Centro sector chief Gregory Bovino said Thursday in a video filmed in front of the state capitol building, referring to jurisdictions that don't voluntarily assist with federal immigration enforcement. 'There is no such thing as a sanctuary state,' Bovino added in the clip, which features images of masked agents arresting men, soundtracked by the Kanye West song 'Power.' Border Patrol agents conducted operations in the Sacramento area on Thursday, including a raid in a Home Depot parking lot that led to at least 11 arrests, including a man alleged to be a U.S. citizen (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) At least 11 people unlawfully in the U.S. were arrested in the early-morning operation, according to the Department of Homeland Security, including an immigrant man officials said was a 'serial criminal' with past charges including illegal entry, possession of marijuana for sale, and felony burglary. Bovino, in the video, said the arrests included a man who appears to have past fentanyl trafficking charges, and an individual arrested for impeding or assaulting a federal officer. However, Andrea Castillo said her husband Jose Castillo is a U.S. citizen and was among those arrested. Video shared with KCRA shows Andrea Castillo yelling at agents as a group of masked officers pile Jose into an unmarked black minivan. 'Leave him alone, he's a U.S. citizen!' she can be heard saying. Border Patrol agents have conducted aggressive operations far from U.S.-Mexico border in recent months, including an early July raid on Los Angeles's MacArthur Park (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) In the footage, one of the agents threatens to mace Castillo, and later says, 'Google me,' when she asks for his badge number. During the exchange, agents say they are detaining Jose Castillo because they believe he slashed the tires on a federal vehicle. The activist group NorCal Resist said Jose Castillo was volunteering on behalf of the organization to document the operation, but did not impede officers. The group added that he has since been released. Local lawmakers are questioning whether the operation violated a recent court order. Assembly member Rhodesia Ransom, whose district includes nearby Stockton, has reportedly asked the state attorney general's office to investigate if federal officers are running afoul of state and federal laws or the U.S. Constitution with the operations. Lawsuits accuse the Border Patrol of using illegal racial profiling to pursue arrests (Getty Images) 'The Border Patrol should do their jobs – at the border – instead of continuing their tirade statewide of illegal racial profiling and illegal arrests,' Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for the governor's office, told Cal Matters. While the Border Patrol can operate within 100 miles of any U.S. border, including the California coast and nearby cities, a federal judge held in April that the agency cannot conduct warrantless immigration stops throughout California's Eastern District, which includes Sacramento. The ruling came in response to a series of operations at the beginning of the year targeting farmworkers in Kern County, which critics said were based on little more than the men's appearance. 'You just can't walk up to people with brown skin and say, 'Give me your papers,'' U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer L. Thurston said in court at the time. A separate ruling last week barred the Border Patrol from making similar raids in the district including Los Angeles, after a lawsuit accused federal agents of making indiscriminate arrests in locations like Home Depot parking lots. When asked about the alleged arrest of a U.S. citizen and the legal criticisms, federal officials pointed to a Homeland Security press release announcing the operation, which did not mention either subject. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, the architect of much of the administration's immigration policy, has reportedly pressed immigration officials to reach 3,000 arrests per day, including by targeting hubs for day laborers like Home Depot parking lots. The Trump administration's recently passed 'Big, Beautiful Bill' domestic spending legislation contains about $170 billion in wider immigration and border funding, which officials say will fuel a surge in domestic immigration operations.
The Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Border Patrol carries out raid at Home Depot parking lot 600 miles from US-Mexico border
Border agents arrested at least 11 people during a Thursday raid outside a northern California Home Depot — including a U.S. citizen who was volunteering as an observer, according to local activists. The operation, which took place in the Sacramento area, nearly 600 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border, is the latest show of force from the Border Patrol in the state, which joined a full-cavalry raid in a Los Angeles park earlier this month. 'There is no such thing as a sanctuary city,' Border Patrol El Centro sector chief Gregory Bovino said Thursday in a video filmed in front of the state capitol building, referring to jurisdictions that don't voluntarily assist with federal immigration enforcement. 'There is no such thing as a sanctuary state,' Bovino added in the clip, which features images of masked agents arresting men, soundtracked by the Kanye West song 'Power.' At least 11 people unlawfully in the U.S. were arrested in the early-morning operation, according to the Department of Homeland Security, including an immigrant man officials said was a 'serial criminal' with past charges including illegal entry, possession of marijuana for sale, and felony burglary. Bovino, in the video, said the arrests included a man who appears to have past fentanyl trafficking charges, and an individual arrested for impeding or assaulting a federal officer. However, Andrea Castillo said her husband Jose Castillo is a U.S. citizen and was among those arrested. Video shared with KCRA shows Andrea Castillo yelling at agents as a group of masked officers pile Jose into an unmarked black minivan. 'Leave him alone, he's a U.S. citizen!' she can be heard saying. In the footage, one of the agents threatens to mace Castillo, and later says, 'Google me,' when she asks for his badge number. During the exchange, agents say they are detaining Jose Castillo because they believe he slashed the tires on a federal vehicle. The activist group NorCal Resist said Jose Castillo was volunteering on behalf of the organization to document the operation, but did not impede officers. The group added that he has since been released. Local lawmakers are questioning whether the operation violated a recent court order. Assembly member Rhodesia Ransom, whose district includes nearby Stockton, has reportedly asked the state attorney general's office to investigate if federal officers are running afoul of state and federal laws or the U.S. Constitution with the operations. 'The Border Patrol should do their jobs – at the border – instead of continuing their tirade statewide of illegal racial profiling and illegal arrests,' Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for the governor's office, told Cal Matters. While the Border Patrol can operate within 100 miles of any U.S. border, including the California coast and nearby cities, a federal judge held in April that the agency cannot conduct warrantless immigration stops throughout California's Eastern District, which includes Sacramento. The ruling came in response to a series of operations at the beginning of the year targeting farmworkers in Kern County, which critics said were based on little more than the men's appearance. 'You just can't walk up to people with brown skin and say, 'Give me your papers,'' U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer L. Thurston said in court at the time. A separate ruling last week barred the Border Patrol from making similar raids in the district including Los Angeles, after a lawsuit accused federal agents of making indiscriminate arrests in locations like Home Depot parking lots. When asked about the alleged arrest of a U.S. citizen and the legal criticisms, federal officials pointed to a Homeland Security press release announcing the operation, which did not mention either subject. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, the architect of much of the administration's immigration policy, has reportedly pressed immigration officials to reach 3,000 arrests per day, including by targeting hubs for day laborers like Home Depot parking lots. The Trump administration's recently passed ' Big, Beautiful Bill' domestic spending legislation contains about $170 billion in wider immigration and border funding, which officials say will fuel a surge in domestic immigration operations.
Fox News
2 days ago
- Fox News
Feds' California Home Depot raid nabs 11 illegal migrants, one with 67 prior jail bookings
Despite pushback from California officials to federal immigration enforcement, Border Patrol in Sacramento arrested 11 illegal migrants during a tense raid at a Home Depot parking lot on Thursday — including one man with 67 prior jail bookings in California since 1986 and a prior fentanyl trafficking conviction. Fox News was on scene as the migrants scattered in all directions when federal agents moved in to make arrests in the sanctuary city. That triggered multiple foot chases and several physical encounters between masked agents and fleeing migrants. In one foot pursuit, agents chased a man who they say slashed the tire of a law enforcement vehicle. The man claimed to be a U.S. citizen. Agents eventually maced the man in the face before arresting him and taking him into custody. His wife shouted at agents throughout the incident, insisting he is a U.S. citizen. Border Patrol agents were forced to drive the damaged vehicle away on its rims. Gregory Bovino, U.S. Border Patrol chief for the El Centro Sector, said his agency will continue prioritizing the removal of criminal illegal immigrants. "There is no sanctuary city, Sacramento is not a sanctuary city, the state of California is not a sanctuary state, there is no sanctuary anywhere," Bovino said. "We'll be here, you'll probably see us in many other locations as well. We're here to stay, we're not going anywhere. We're going to effect this mission and secure the homeland." The migrant with 67 prior jail bookings is Mexican national Javier Dimas-Alcantara, who is an aggravated felon with convictions and charges spanning decades. His criminal history includes multiple instances of transporting and selling narcotics or controlled substances, felony burglary, possession of a controlled narcotic with intent to sell, carrying a loaded firearm in public and multiple felony-level marijuana possession charges for sale. He's also been arrested for illegal entry, revocation of probation due to reoffending, multiple instances of providing false identification to law enforcement, multiple cases of narcotic possession and being under the influence of a controlled substance. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin slammed the defenders of sanctuary policies. "Dimas has been convicted of a myriad of offenses — you would not want this man to be your neighbor and yet politicians like [California Gov.] Gavin Newsom defend criminals who terrorize American communities and demonize law enforcement who defend those same communities," McLaughlin said. "He and every other sanctuary politician should be thanking CBP for getting this scum out of American communities instead of obstructing federal law enforcement at every possible turn." McLaughlin said that the Trump administration has been given a clear mandate by the American people to get violent illegal aliens off the streets and out of the country. The other apprehended migrants included a previously deported Guatemalan aggravated felon and a previously deported Mexican migrant with a prior arrest for driving without a license. Another detainee is a Guatemalan migrant who had a voluntary return removal in 2009 with prior arrests for trespassing and failure to provide ID. Their names have not been released yet.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Border Patrol Agents Raid a Home Depot in Northern California
Border Patrol agents conducted an immigration raid on Thursday at a Home Depot parking lot in Sacramento County, in a sign that federal officials are heading deeper into California after focusing on the Los Angeles region in recent weeks. Gregory K. Bovino, the head of Border Patrol's El Centro region, said in a produced video that federal agents had begun operations in the Sacramento area, and that at least eight people had been arrested for being in the country without authorization. Sacramento is a nearly 600-mile drive northwest of El Centro, Calif., and the border with Mexico. The raid came nearly a week after a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to stop indiscriminate immigration arrests in the Los Angeles region. The ruling in the Central District of California did not apply to Sacramento. The edited video, which was overlaid with the song 'Power' by Kanye West, appeared to show people running away from masked federal agents in tactical gear in a Home Depot parking lot. 'Folks, there is no such thing as a sanctuary city,' Mr. Bovino said in the video. 'There's no such thing as a sanctuary state.' The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that at least 11 undocumented immigrants had been arrested in the Sacramento area as of Thursday evening. One person, Mr. Bovino said, was arrested on Thursday for impeding or assaulting a federal officer during the raid. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Every Ohio Republican congressmen voted to militarize America's cities
Federal agents block people protesting an ICE immigration raid. (Photo by) Minutes before the surreal show of force by masked, heavily armed federal agents, kids were playing on the soccer field in MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, and a children's summer camp in the historic immigrant neighborhood was having fun. 'Better get used to us now because this is gonna be normal very soon,' said Customs Border Chief Gregory Bovino after ICE agents and military units arrived at the local park carrying rifles and traveling on foot, horseback, and in armored vehicles. Children and families scattered in terror. Mission accomplished? Faceless federal law enforcement moved, unprovoked, on a city park in a major American city in the middle of the day to conduct an apparent immigration sweep with weapons mounted on tanks. I cannot get the video out of my head. It should rattle every one of us to our core. Boots on the ground in the land of the free? You okay with that? The armed occupation scene in LA that went viral is not a one-off, people. Expect the camouflaged army of state police — deployed in full tactical gear to a mostly empty urban park — to greatly expand its militaristic campaign against the racially suspicious in the U.S., citizens or not, following a massive budget infusion from congressional Republicans. Unlimited funding has evidently convinced heady enforcers of state-sponsored intimidation and cruelty tactics that they're untouchable. When a rightly livid LA mayor demanded the outrageous ICE assaults on her city stop, the democratically elected leader of over 3,770,000 Angelenos was simply dismissed by the top border official. 'The federal government doesn't work for Karen Bass,' huffed Bovino. (So, who does it work for?) Moreover, he declared, the veiled federal agents dressed for war weren't leaving LA until they were good and ready. Until their indiscriminate dragnet of people with brown skin met an indefinite quota of no mercy, i.e., prolonged detention without due process and deportation to third countries where the human cargo lacks citizenship, family ties, and protection. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX By now you know the vast majority of people being grabbed off the streets, slammed up against walls, ripped from their children, ambushed outside courtrooms, chased down farm fields, and generally terrorized by tough guys who hide behind neck gaiters, are not hardened criminals who threaten anybody. They are not even close to being the 'worst of the worst' that Trump pledged to deport, according to the government's own data. The besieged populations are the present-day huddled masses whose only crime is working hard and paying taxes in the United States without legal status. Some are parents and grandparents with first- and second-generation progeny. Many have been on the spectrum of regular ICE check-ins to asylum-seekers and those on the long path to citizenship for years, if not decades. They are fixtures in their communities, neighbors, friends. Today they are hunted as prey. Deprived of dignity. Treated as less than human. Wrestled into submission and stuffed into unmarked vehicles bound for unknown destinations. Are you ready for armed occupation on steroids in Ohio tearing immigrant communities apart for sadistic spectacle? It is coming. Every single Ohio Republican member of Congress voted for it, while showering billionaires with tax handouts. With a three-fold increase in its budget, ICE is poised explode its militarized immigration enforcement and detention operation to a level never seen before. Picture thousands of new agents deployed throughout the country. Double the detention centers. Immigration-related arrests across Ohio have already tripled across the state under Trump. (Imagine it six months from today.) A New York Times analysis of the pattern and pace of immigration enforcement from Jan. 20 to June 10 showed raw arrest numbers in Ohio spiked by 209% since Inauguration Day. The state's ICE detention capacity also shot up significantly from two facilities and roughly 120 beds to half a dozen county jails with 1,450 beds. Ohio's Geauga County continues its fight to keep ICE contract secret Housing ICE inmates is a money-maker for counties with struggling budgets and some zealously guard their contractual arrangements with ICE from the public. Meanwhile, hundreds of Ohio migrants have been incarcerated, cut off from family and work not for criminal conduct — they pose zero threat according to even ICE metrics — but for navigating a civil immigration system replete with problems. Yet for weeks that can stretch into months, prisoners with no criminal histories sit behind bars denied bond and hope. Human beings who have been a rich part of the fabric of Ohio, who have filled acute labor shortages in the state and revitalized declining economies are left to rot in cramped cages before, with little notice, they're shipped back to their origin country or some distant place they've never been. Adding to the depravity that paralyzes Ohio immigrants with fear are Republican state lawmakers pushing several bills through the legislature to enhance the arrest and detention of 'any person who is, or is suspected of being unlawfully present in the U.S.' They are, in effect, setting the stage for something Ohioans are wholly unprepared to process — the expansive overreach of militarized ICE operations moving, unprovoked, on Ohio cities and towns to seize and disappear even any person suspected of being unlawfully present in the state. Get used to a police state and tanks in the road, border chief? Normalize gut-wrenching inhumanity on a mass scale in America? Never. Never. Never. 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