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DOCUMENTED OUTRAGE - On Thursday, June 19, 2025, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents conducted a large-scale raid at the Home Depot on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood.
Eyewitnesses and news footage captured agents chasing individuals—primarily people of color—through the parking lot. One incident, broadcast widely across local television, showed an ICE agent tackling a man on the turf adjacent to the sidewalk and forcibly driving his knee into the man's rib cage. The force used, by all appearances, was excessive.
More than 30 individuals were arrested and detained in the operation.
One of them was Job Garcia, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, photographer, and doctoral student at Claremont University. Garcia had gone to Home Depot to pick up a delivery when he heard shouts of "La Migra! La Migra!" Grabbing his phone, he followed the agents to document what was happening.
Garcia reported that he witnessed ICE agents surround a box truck and use a baton to smash the passenger window. As he filmed, an agent rushed him, grabbed his arm, threw his phone, and tackled him to the ground—joined by three others. They shouted expletives as they handcuffed him. At no point, Garcia says, did any agent ask for his ID or citizenship status. “They just assumed I was undocumented,” he said.
He was transported—still handcuffed—to a staging area at Lot K of Dodger Stadium.
There, detainees were shuffled between vans. Garcia was seated on the hot asphalt for over an hour, fingerprinted, and later moved to the Metropolitan Federal Detention Facility in downtown Los Angeles. He was interrogated and heard agents joking about how many people they had "grabbed" that day. “Trump is really working us,” one ICE agent reportedly said. Another replied, “We got 31 today. That’s a good day.”
Garcia was released on Friday, June 20, without charges. The U.S. Attorney’s Office declined comment, referring all media inquiries to the Department of Homeland Security, which also refused to respond.
This incident isn’t isolated. Multiple U.S. citizens have been arrested by ICE agents in recent years. Instead of acknowledging these errors, DHS often deflects blame or constructs dubious charges after the fact.
What’s particularly troubling is the use of Dodger Stadium property—owned by Frank McCourt and the Dodgers organization—as a staging area. Garcia’s footage revealed the vans and detainees at Lot K. While Dodgers President Stan Kasten denied any knowledge or approval, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) acknowledged their vehicles were on the premises. They claimed it was unrelated to ICE operations—an assertion that strains credulity.
Kasten’s denial is further complicated by ownership ties. Mark Walter, the Dodgers' principal owner, also serves as CEO of Guggenheim Partners, a financial firm that holds a stake in GEO Group, a private prison company that operates ICE detention centers. Walter also leads TWG Global, which partnered with Palantir Technologies—a company known for creating surveillance tools used by ICE.
Adding to the opacity, two California congressional representatives were recently denied access to the ICE processing center in Adelanto, which is run by GEO Group. One can only wonder how many other facilities are operating without oversight.
In light of these revelations, perhaps it’s time for Los Angeles residents to boycott Dodger games—and even the Los Angeles Lakers, recently acquired by Kasten and Walter.
Where are our elected officials?
Where is Mayor Karen Bass?
Where is Supervisor Hilda Solis?
Where are Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez and Hugo Soto-Martinez?
Where is California State Senator Maria Elena Durazo?
Where is U.S. Senator Alex Padilla?
Where is the PUBLIC OUTCRY?
For decades, immigrants—documented and undocumented—have worked at Dodger Stadium. They’ve cleaned the restrooms, prepared food, parked the cars, and scrubbed the venue clean after every game. Yet now, the very institution they supported has become—intentionally or not—a backdrop for an operation that violates the rights of citizens and non-citizens alike.
It’s time to speak up.
It’s time to ask questions.
It’s time for accountability.
(Caroline Aguirre is a retired 24-year State of California law enforcement officer, LAPD family member, community activist and Neighborhood Watch captain. Aguirre is a CityWatch contributor.)
