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A man from Los Angeles who was part of a law enforcement vehicle and held said that he was used as a “scapegoat” in the midst of fears concerning the application of immigration.
Friday afternoon, the mayor and police chief of Huntington Park said that the police who had met a gray dodge Durango on Tuesday evening thought that it was perhaps a federal vehicle for the application of the law, because inside was light and blue visors and several portable radios of the type used by the application of the law.
The police watched more closely and discovered that the vehicle had a magazine for a firearm, said police chief Cosme Lozano at a press conference on Friday afternoon. Fernando Diaz, 23, was initially arrested on the basis of a bench mandate for an allegation of driving driving from May 11, but he was finally reserved that night and accused of having carried and hidden a firearm in his vehicle, according to the judicial archives.
In a statement on Saturday, the city said that what seemed to be federal immigration documents, as well as personal files of unknown people, were also in the vehicle.
“This proof is added to the statements made by Mr. Diaz himself, claiming to be a former customs and border protection employees,” he said.
Diaz was not accused of having usurped the identity of a federal agent, but the city said in a statement that the police service had sent a case to the district prosecutor for any accusations. In an interview, he said that he had never claimed to be a federal agent and that he was rather punished for the bad deeds of others.
“They don’t want to go to Washington and speak directly to the president of the questions that take place here,” said Diaz, referring to “politicians”. “They want to use me as a scapegoat so that they can draw the attention of Washington or who they want to draw attention.”
Diaz was arrested in the bottom of Mass immigration raids It has been scared among communities across the country.
Hours of raid social media videos, checked by NBC News, show agents lacking names, badges and badges numbers that issued orders to people in restaurants, Home Depot locations And tap.
Agents, generally working under the Ministry of Internal Security and its immigration arm and customs application, often use facial coverings and unmarked vehicles.
Agents also often refuse to give their name or number of badges, increasing the anger of civil libertarians and groups of rights of immigrants who argue that without clear identities, agents may lack authority and invite resistance.
In March, the California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned that criminals pretending to be federal agents tried to capitalize “on fear and uncertainty” of the repression of immigration promised by President Donald Trump.
In mid-June, the senses. Scott Wiener and Jesse Arreguin, both Democrats, presented the police law without secret, which would prohibit law enforcement agents from covering their face and operating without clear labels or badge information.
Other officials, Governor Gavin Newsom, to local mayors like Arturo Flores by Huntington Park, also faced the Trump administration on the deployment of troops and masked federal agents for mass deportations in the state.
“Who are these people?” Flores said, citing a resident concerned about federal agents. “Are they bonus hunters?” Are they vigilant? These questions reflect the breakdown of confidence. When ice and other federal agencies choose to operate in secret, without transparency, they do not only apply the law; They encourage fear. ”
The arrest of Diaz inspired the municipal council of Huntington Park to adopt a resolution ordering his police service to “check” anyone who claims to be a federal immigration agent. The city of around 52,000 is almost 97% Latin.
The city said Friday evening that it postponed certain summer events for 30 days following ice raids in the region and “generalized anxiety” caused by the authorities using unmarked vehicles and masking their identity.
Flores invited Flores on Friday, Flores invited internal security secretary Kristi Noem to meet and discuss the reason why he believes that his agents must identify.
The agency did not respond to a request for comments.
Internal security spokesperson have said that the agents should hide their identity because their information, including their domestic addresses, will otherwise be “Doxxed” or made public by criminals.
The tension between local officials and the federal immigration authorities, said Diaz, made him feel like a “guinea pig”.
“I am their scapegoat because they need someone to blame,” he said.
Judicial files show that Diaz was released without surety on the allegations of firearms and said to carry out a community service as part of a diversion program that would erase the case if it was out of trouble. The case of drunkenness was not heard; A hearing is scheduled for August 11.
Diaz said there was no mention or concern about the identification allegations of an officer when he was in court for accusations of firearms.
