Masked Men Targeted Car Washes, Home Depots: 30 People Missing
ICE and Border Patrol raids on Los Angeles’ Westside this week have caused panic and fear at local businesses, with reports estimating that roughly 30 people have been taken into custody since Saturday.
The grassroots organization West Los Rapid Response Network said the most recent raid occurred Wednesday afternoon at Overland Car Wash, 3764 Overland Ave., where witnesses said four employees were detained shortly after noon. The community group stated this marked the second consecutive day that car wash workers were targeted and the third such operation in the area this week.
On Tuesday, August 12, nine people, including eight car wash employees and a plumber who happened to be working on a nearby street, were taken during a raid at Handy J Car Wash in Culver City. Security footage from that incident showed multiple government vehicles arriving as agents pursued workers attempting to flee.
Shari Gerstenberger, an onlooker, took video of a 60-year-old man who was wearing the blue shirt of a worker and who was wrestled to the ground. She said she was still shaken and that the raid was “an ambush,” to Fox 11 News. The people standing nearby demanded answers from the masked and unidentified men, who refused to respond.
The man is the brother of the car wash manager.
The first raid in the recent string took place Saturday morning, August 9, at a Home Depot in Marina del Rey, where advocates said at least eight day laborers were detained. Family members and observers reported that federal agents later returned to at least one worker’s home, where he was taken into custody in front of relatives.
LA Taco confirmed that the arrests have included at least one lawful permanent resident, but there may be more who have legal status among the disappeared.
