Human Impact Project

ICE conducted raids at the Ambiance Apparel warehouse in Los Angeles's Fashion District, detaining approximately two dozen workers on alleged administrative immigration violations. Families of the detained individuals report difficulty making contact with their loved ones and locating where they are being held, with some detainees reportedly already deported. About a dozen of those taken were from Veracruz, Mexico, and attorneys working with the families say access to detainees has been extremely limited.

Jesús Cruz, detained during an immigration raid at a car wash and deported to Mexico, was reunited in August with his wife, Noemi Ciau, and their four children during a visit to his hometown of Kini in the Yucatán Peninsula. The family is now weighing whether to relocate to Mexico or remain in Inglewood, California, where Ciau works at Los Angeles International Airport and the children attend school. Cruz said his eldest daughter stopped sleeping well and quit piano, and his youngest son began acting out, since his deportation. The family continues to face a lengthy reunification process after Cruz was deported following his detention.

Jose Padilla, a father of four, was detained by ICE during a raid at a car wash in Los Angeles where he worked, separating him from his partner Alma Ramirez and their children. He was held at a detention center in California City before being released on August 4, 2026, after six months in custody. The family continues to face a pending legal case and financial strain as they rebuild following his detention.

Four undocumented employees from Guatemala were detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during a worksite enforcement operation at D-Hand Car Wash in Southington, Connecticut on June 9, 2025. The agents, who did not initially identify themselves, asked employees for documentation and papers around 9:30 a.m. The operation was conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations Hartford division along with Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations. Community members and advocates gathered at the Hartford courthouse Monday evening in response to the incident.

Federal immigration officials conducted a raid targeting day laborers in the parking lot of a Home Depot in Santa Ana on Monday. A 50-year-old man from Peru was detained after agents arrived and began taking workers into custody, but was released after producing asylum seeker documents. The man said agents pointed guns at the group and took several people into custody in front of the store on MacArthur Boulevard.

Cary López Alvarado, a 28-year-old U.S. citizen nine months pregnant, was detained by immigration agents in Hawthorne, California on Sunday. López Alvarado said agents shoved her during the arrest, causing her to lose her balance as she tried to protect her stomach. After her release, she experienced sharp stomach pains and was hospitalized for one day for monitoring. López Alvarado and her cousin Alberto Sandoval, also a U.S. citizen, were doing maintenance work when agents in Border Patrol uniforms arrived in marked CBP vehicles following a white pickup truck carrying two undocumented workers, including her partner Brian Nájera.

An unnamed man was detained by ICE on June 9, 2025, at a Home Depot in Huntington Park, California, where he regularly sought work. His family launched a fundraiser to pay for legal representation to challenge the deportation process. The man is described as the sole provider for his family.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted sweeps across Orange County on June 10, 2025, detaining at least a dozen people at a Home Depot on Harbor Boulevard and others at multiple locations including businesses near Warner Avenue and Broadway. Hundreds of protesters gathered at Santa Ana's federal building and civic center in response, and law enforcement deployed pepper spray and tear gas as the demonstration grew and blocked streets. Orange County Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento said ICE appeared to target day laborers waiting for work.

Carlos Roberto Montoya Valdez, a 52-year-old day laborer from Guatemala, died after being struck by an SUV on the 210 Freeway while fleeing a federal immigration enforcement operation at a Monrovia Home Depot in 2025. He worked to support his wife and four daughters. The Department of Homeland Security has denied that its agents chased him. One year later, community members held a vigil and marched to the store demanding Home Depot release security footage to his family, while state lawmakers renewed calls for SB 1103, the REPAIR Act, which would require large retailers to disclose immigration enforcement activity on their property.

On June 6, 2024, federal immigration agents conducted a raid on Ambiance Apparel, a garment factory in downtown Los Angeles, arresting over 40 workers, many from Zapotec Indigenous communities. The operation separated families and triggered legal challenges and advocacy organizing. One year later, affected workers and families continue to face economic hardship, emotional trauma, and pending immigration proceedings. Advocates including Lucha Zapoteca secured the release of 11 of 14 initially detained family members and raised over $300,000 in support, though some workers remain in federal custody and others have been deported.

Mario and more than 40 other workers, many from Zapotec Indigenous communities, were detained during an ICE raid at Ambiance Apparel on June 6, 2025. A year later, some workers have been deported while others remain in immigration proceedings, with families facing ongoing economic hardship and trauma. Mario's daughter Yurien and other family members continue to struggle with the lasting consequences of the enforcement action.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted coordinated raids in Los Angeles's Fashion District on June 6, 2025, detaining more than 40 undocumented immigrants, including over 20 workers at a Korean-owned wholesale clothing business. Following the raids, some Korean American merchants closed their stores and protests occurred throughout the city. Business activity in the area was affected, with some workers departing and customers avoiding the location.

In the Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles, agents returned to the Home Depot where they had detained dozens of day laborers earlier that month. Community observers recorded as agents detained two people; a masked agent aimed a handgun at close range; another sprayed a chemical irritant; and an agent jumped into an unmarked SUV as it began rolling forward after agents apparently had forgotten to put it in park.

In June 2025, ICE conducted a raid on Glenn Valley Foods, a meatpacking plant in Omaha, arresting 76 workers in the largest worksite operation in Nebraska since the start of the Trump administration. Federal authorities said the raid followed a three-month investigation into workers allegedly using stolen identities from U.S. citizens to gain employment, and the investigation remains ongoing. About a dozen workers have been deported or transferred to out-of-state custody, while 63 remain in immigration custody at the Lincoln County Detention Center. Seven people, including four protesters, have been charged in connection with the raid, while most detained workers face immigration proceedings.

Erasmo Zavala, a Berks County father who had applied for a U visa after cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation into his daughter's murder, was detained by ICE in April 2025 despite his pending humanitarian visa application. During his nearly two-month detention, he was repeatedly shackled at his hands and feet and flown between facilities, including Moshannon Valley Processing Center and a facility in Louisiana, often with no explanation of where he was being taken. He said he was awakened in the middle of the night twice and driven to the airport, fearing deportation to Mexico. Zavala said, 'They treat you as if you really were some kind of criminal. But what kind of criminal dedicates himself to his family and mostly goes from work to home?' He was released following a court order from Judge Stephanie Haines, with his case tied to a dispute over a Trump administration policy rescinding protections for crime victims and witnesses cooperating with law enforcement.

A dual citizen of Mexico and the United States was detained while working in California in June 2025. He was held for four days without access to a lawyer or his family.

Undocumented day laborers who volunteered to clear toxic fire debris in Altadena and Pasadena after the January 2025 Eaton wildfire were arrested in June 2025 ICE sweeps. Workers cleared roads and distributed water to fire victims without pay. ICE enforcement operations targeted job sites, Home Depot parking lots, and street vendors in wildfire-affected and recovery-zone neighborhoods. ICE arrested over 2,200 people in LA in June 2025 alone.

Homeland Security Investigations agents raided two locations of Buona Forchetta restaurant in San Diego's South Park neighborhood on Friday evening, deploying flash bang grenades and detaining multiple employees. According to the restaurant manager, at least four workers were detained during the operation. Community members gathered outside to protest, and San Diego Police were called to assist with crowd control, though they did not participate in the enforcement action.

Federal agents arrested 13 undocumented immigrants at a window supply business in Paducah, Kentucky during a worksite investigation into employment fraud. Eight of the arrestees were indicted on charges of using stolen or false Social Security numbers on employment verification forms (I-9s) between June 2021 and August 2025. The eight indicted defendants each face up to five years in prison if convicted. The remaining five arrested individuals were not criminally charged and remain in ICE custody pending immigration removal proceedings.

ICE agents conducted workplace enforcement actions at Manitou Equipment America and Global Polymer Industries in Madison, South Dakota on May 13, 2025. Eight workers were arrested on immigration violations across the two facilities: two from Nicaragua and one from El Salvador at Manitou Equipment, and three from Nicaragua and two from Guatemala at Global Polymer Industries. All eight were taken into federal custody and are pending deportation proceedings. ICE stated the raids were based on information about illegal employment operations.