Huntington Park Mayor Arturo Flores on Saturday condemned what he called “a wave of alarming immigration-related activity” across that city, and urged his police department to “enforce state and local laws concerning unmarked vehicles, visible license plates and required agency identification.”
Flores said the raids involved “masked and unidentified individuals reportedly abducting residents in broad daylight.”
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“These are not lawful arrests. These are abductions,” Flores said. “For more than a week, we have witnessed families being torn apart, children left without parents, and residents vanishing without explanation. Men dressed in tactical gear, operating unmarked vehicles without displaying credentials or agency affiliation, have infiltrated our neighborhoods in direct violation of our community’s values, civil rights and the basic principles of due process.
“… I am calling for the immediate cessation of these raids and for the Huntington Park Police Department to begin verifying the identities and authority of any individuals conducting such operations within city limits,” the mayor’s statement added.
It wasn’t immediately clear when the Huntington Park raids Flores referred to took place, or how many people were detained.
Flores’ words came as the U.S. government continues to conduct immigration enforcement raids across Los Angeles County in a series of raids that began June 6 and have drawn daily protests from residents and Democratic officials.
The latest reported raids occurred in Pasadena on Saturday morning, after raids in Maywood and Bell on Friday, Hollywood and San Fernando on Thursday and Glendale on Wednesday.
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