A protester in California appeared to snatch off a federal agent’s mask during an altercation last week, according to new footage.
The video, released by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), shows a woman confronting federal law enforcement officials behind a police line in San Diego. After an officer holds her by the arms, she can be seen pushing him in the face, removing his face covering.
Why It Matters
ICE has been pushed into the national spotlight surrounding immigration enforcement in recent months. The agency has received growing criticism for allowing its agents to carry out targeted enforcement operations in plain clothes and face coverings.
ICE officials argue that masks are crucial to protect agents and their families from death threats. The agency is facing increased scrutiny as President Donald Trump directs his administration to remove millions of migrants without legal status. California lawmakers and members of Congress have introduced legislation to prohibit federal agents from donning masks during enforcement operations.
What To Know
ICE said the protesters were defending Denis Anderson Chicoj Yacon, a Guatemalan national who has no official record of being legally present in the United States. ICE said investigators were looking into his situation after they “discovered several foreign monetary transactions, which are a major red flag.”
“On July 2, ICE conducted a targeted immigration enforcement arrest in the Linda Vista neighborhood in San Diego. During the operation, an illegal alien attempted to flee the scene by ramming into a government vehicle,” Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Newsweek.
“After the subject was safely apprehended and placed into custody, agents established a perimeter around the subject’s car to preserve evidence. During the arrest, three individuals—including Jeane Wong—crossed the perimeter, interfered with operations, and assaulted HSI agents,” she added.
The agency said a crowd gathered at the scene and began shouting obscenities and threatening to reveal the identities of federal law enforcement officials. Three individuals from the crowd allegedly “attacked the officers,” the agency wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
DHS has said agents are facing an almost 700 percent increase in assaults.
Trump has directed ICE to increase enforcement operations in sanctuary cities, where local authorities limit cooperation with federal immigration officials.
California, which has multiple sanctuary jurisdictions, has been a focal point of these efforts. The state remains a key battleground amid ramped up immigration enforcement operations.
On Monday, federal authorities descended on MacArthur Park in Los Angeles’ Westlake neighborhood, where children were playing, sparking uproar from state Democrats.
What People Are Saying
Tricia McLaughlin, the assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, told Newsweek: “Our brave ICE law enforcement is now facing a nearly 700 percent increase in assaults against them. Secretary Noem has been clear: If you obstruct or assault our law enforcement, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement wrote on X: “Last week, an unhinged illegal alien in San Diego could have killed federal officers by repeatedly ramming his car into a government vehicle. A crowd of agitators began screaming obscenities and threatening to dox federal law enforcement officials, and three of them physically attacked the officers.”
Todd M. Lyons, the acting director of ICE, added: “This dangerous anti-ICE rhetoric has to stop before it’s too late.”
A federal agent standing outside an apartment complex during a raid in Denver in February.
A federal agent standing outside an apartment complex during a raid in Denver in February.
David Zalubowski/AP
Update 7/10/25, 3:37 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional comment from the Department of Homeland Security.