The video appeared to show federal agents detaining people Thursday morning near Home Depot in Hollywood.
Video recorded in the 5600 block of Sunset Boulevard shows an agent in protective gear detaining at least three men. The man was escorted by an agent and escorted in one of at least three white vans parked in the street near the home improvement store.
Another video posted by an immigration rights advocacy group showed agents in a protective vest marked “Border Patrol,” “Federal Agent,” and “Police HSI” at the scene of the parking lot.
Details regarding law enforcement activities were not immediately available from federal authorities. Witnesses told NBC News that several federal law enforcement agencies arrived near Home Depot around 7:20am. The agents detained nearly 20 people, witnesses said.
Witnesses said the agents were “heavyly armed and taking a day’s worker.”
The NBCLA has not confirmed how many people have been detained. Details regarding federal law enforcement operations were not available immediately.
Immigration enforcement operations around Southern California reported that this month sparked days of protest in Los Angeles and other communities. The Homeless Security Department says businesses, including ice attacks at businesses, will continue as part of the Trump administration’s massive deportation plan, a central promise in the presidential election.
On Wednesday, at least six people were detained for immigration enforcement activities in Pasadena at a bus stop.
The operation led to a protest in Pico Rivera on Tuesday, including around 100 people late that night. ICE agents carried out attacks at several sites around the city, including four food stores at Whittier Boulevard and the Lowe’s Home Improvement Store in the 8600 block of Washington Boulevard.
It was not clear how many people were detained.
In a statement Wednesday, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said agents were on the streets every day.
“US immigrants, customs enforcers and agents are on the streets every day. Public safety is prioritized by finding, arresting and removing criminal foreign criminals and immigrant violators from our neighborhood,” Ice’s statement read. “All foreigners who violate US immigration laws may be subject to arrest, detention, and are removable by final order, or removed from the US.”
President Trump said in a social media post Sunday that he had directed federal immigration officials to expand their operations in Los Angeles and other cities.
The administration highlights arrests that include undocumented individuals convicted of violent crimes. Those caught up in the nationwide attacks include asylum seekers, those who have continued visas and immigrants waiting for a day in immigration courts.
The majority of the resulting protests were in parts of downtown Los Angeles, near the federal building that includes the federal detention center. Marines and federal national guard forces have been sent to LA by the Trump administration over objections from state and local leaders.
California has 10.6 million immigrants, more than any other state, according to the California Institute of Public Policy. The Pew Research Center estimates that 1.8 million immigrants in California have not been documented in 2022, down from 2.8 million in 2007.
Most of the state’s immigrant population is in large coastal counties such as Los Angeles County, where around 3.5 million people, or around 35% of the county’s population, are immigrants. According to the report, Los Angeles County has around 809,000 undocumented immigrants, with a population of 9.6 million.
