The nine-month pregnant US citizen was hospitalized when released from immigration custody after being detained by a federal agent in Hawthorne on Sunday.
Carrie Lopez, despite being a US citizen, experiences sharp pain in her stomach after immigrants arrest her. She said she accused federal agents of preventing her undocumented husband from arresting.
“They surrounded us all,” she said.
The conflict that took place near the intersection of 120th Avenue and Hawthorn Way was caught up in cameras. In the video, the agent, who hides his face with a mask and sunglasses and moves into a marked Border Patrol vehicle, is informed that it is on private property.
“Sorry, ma’am, listen to me, you are blocking my arrest,” the agent said. “I do my job. You have nothing to say, you have nothing to say.”
Later, Lopez is asked to let them know they are on private property and she asks them to leave. According to Lopez, the agent accused her of trying to interfere with her surgery.
“I was blocking the door because they were trying to force it to open, but I said they were on private property,” the woman said.
At the time, Lopez was with her husband and his colleagues. Neither is documented. The conflict came when they tried to pull into the workplace building. Eventually, the agent arrested Lopez, her husband, his colleagues and her cousin.
“I was losing my balance because he was like pushing me through the door,” said Lopez, who was crying in tears. “That’s when I leaned forward, trying to protect my stomach.”
Lopez’s due date was not another week, but after her experience, her doctors have been monitoring her happiness and the baby’s well-being.
“I didn’t resist,” she said. “I can’t fight back. I’m pregnant.”
Lopez is told that the agent will contact her about allegations of obstruction. She said she was not given any documents or quotations in connection with the arrest.
The US Department of Homeland Security has not returned a request for comment from NBC4.
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