(Image Credit: IMAGN) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents apprehend an undocumented migrant they were surveilling in Herndon, Va., Jan. 15, 2025.
Azusa, California – An undocumented father was arrested by immigration agents Thursday morning while walking to his car to take his teenage daughter to school, according to his wife and security footage of the incident.
The arrest occurred just before 7:45 a.m. in a residential neighborhood of Azusa. Surveillance video shows the man, dressed in a blue outfit, approaching his family’s truck when several unmarked vehicles pulled up and agents quickly surrounded him.
The man’s 14-year-old daughter, who had been heading to school with him, ran back inside their home crying. “She said, ‘Mom, mom, my dad, someone caught him,’” the man’s wife recounted in an interview. Her name is being withheld due to fears for her own immigration status.
The wife, also undocumented, captured video of her husband being taken into custody and placed into a grey sedan. She said he shouted during the arrest that the officers were with immigration, though it remains unclear whether they were from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). NBC4 reached out to both agencies for clarification but had not received a response as of Thursday evening.
The family has lived in the United States for more than two decades. The couple originally came from Puebla, Mexico, 21 years ago in search of a better life. They have three children and recently became grandparents. The wife said they have made Azusa their home.
“He didn’t have a deportation order,” she said. “I don’t know why they took him. Why did they take him?”
The arrest has raised questions and concerns within the local community, particularly regarding immigration enforcement actions near schools and the potential trauma to children. Advocates have long urged immigration authorities to avoid enforcement operations in sensitive locations, such as schools and hospitals.
As of now, the man’s whereabouts and legal status remain unknown. His family is seeking answers and support in the wake of his sudden detention.
