A man who was arrested during an immigration raid at a Cypress Park Home Depot — as federal agents drove off with his 1-year-old daughter — has been released on bond and reunited with his family.

In photos shared with Boyle Heights Beat, Dennis Quiñonez, a 32-year-old U.S. citizen, is seen embracing his mother shortly after his release on Thursday, Nov. 6, two days after his arrest. Wearing the same clothes from the day of his arrest, he plants a kiss on her forehead. 

“I’m relieved to share that my son was released on bond yesterday. I want to thank everyone who helped us and for the community members who took video,” his mother, Maria, said in a statement shared with Boyle Heights Beat by the Immigrant Defenders Law Center. “For two days, he was taken from his daughter and loved ones, and we were devastated. I couldn’t sleep, not knowing his whereabouts. Now I can finally rest, knowing he’s reunited with his little girl.” 

In the Nov. 4 encounter, captured by witnesses on the scene, federal agents are seen talking to Quiñonez, while his daughter sat strapped to her car seat in the back.

Agents in tactical gear lead the man, with his hands behind his back, to another vehicle while two others get into the two front seats of his black Chevy and drive off with the toddler. 

Maria told reporters on Wednesday that she received a call from Border Patrol around 10 that morning telling her where to pick up her granddaughter. Maria said she was not able to take her home until 1 p.m. after she provided a birth certificate.

“When I picked up my granddaughter from the federal agents, she had a dirty diaper, a bruise on her face, and was developing a rash. She was exhausted and cried,” Maria said in the statement. 

Watching the videos of her son’s arrest was “unbearable,” she described. “I still don’t understand why this happened, but it seems he was in the wrong place at the wrong time while brown-skinned. It’s terrifying that they could take him and his child without identifying themselves.”

The arrest took place during a “targeted immigration enforcement operation” by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS said the operation resulted in the arrests of five undocumented immigrants from Mexico and Guatemala. The agency said their criminal histories included driving under the influence, driving without a license, and previous removal from the country. 

“During the operation, a U.S. citizen exited his vehicle wielding a hammer and threw rocks at law enforcement while he had a child in his car,” DHS said in a statement. 

“He was arrested for assault and during his arrest a pistol was found in his car, that is reported stolen out of the state of New York. The individual has an active warrant for property damage,” the statement continued.

According to a federal criminal complaint, Quiñonez has been charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a person previously convicted of domestic violence. 

Federal authorities detailed in an affidavit that Quiñonez was yelling at the agents while holding a hammer “in a threatening manner,” about 100 feet away from them. As they were driving away, the agents observed Quiñonez put the hammer into the trunk of his car then throw two “rock-like” objects at their vehicle before getting back into the driver’s seat of his car. 

​​It was at this moment that a team of agents boxed in Quinoñez’s vehicle to prevent him from leaving.

Quiñonez told the agents that “his daughter was in the vehicle and that he did not want to be separated from her,” according to the affidavit. 

Quiñonez was released on Thursday on $10,000 bond and is due back in court on Nov. 20 and Dec. 1, according to the Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef). 

In a post on Instagram, ImmDef, which has been assisting the family, said they are seeking answers about the enforcement operation and its impact on the community.

“This isn’t just about one family. It’s not just because they were U.S. citizens. It’s about all of us. Let’s keep building a movement that protects people, defends our rights, and refuses to be silent,” the post partially said.

Senior reporter Alejandra Molina contributed to this report.