The FBI has offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of a person who appeared to fire a gun at federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in Southern California on Thursday.
The alleged shooting took place on Laguna Road in Camarillo, Ventura County, where agents were executing a warrant at what the Department of Homeland Security described as a “marijuana facility” and met with resistance from local activists and workers blocking their path, leading to several arrests.
The location of the raids has been confirmed as having taken place at state-licensed marijuana nurseries in an agricultural region.U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, who heads the Central District of California office, announced the FBI reward on social media and shared a picture and video of the suspect, who is seen wearing a black T-shirt, pants, and a white surgical mask.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) also posted about the incident on X, warning: “Make no mistake: anyone who targets our agents will face the full force of federal prosecution.”
According to CBS News, agents en route to the farm in Camarillo encountered the protesters blocking their way, ordered them to back up and fired tear gas and non-lethal rounds when they stood their ground, beginning what proved to be a four-hour-long standoff that also saw the demonstrators smash vehicles’ windows with pebbles and stones.
The Ventura County Fire Department reported that paramedics transported four people to the hospital and treated three more at the scene.
Federal agents brought at least one person they arrested to nearby St. John’s Hospital, according to the Oxnard Police Department, and left men outside the facility to assist with crowd control, anticipating further protests.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted a clip of the clashes on X with the comment: “Kids running from tear gas, crying on the phone because their mother was just taken from the fields. Trump calls me ‘Newscum’ – but he’s the real scum.”
CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott fired back on the same platform: “Here’s some breaking news: 10 juveniles were found at this marijuana facility – all illegal aliens, eight of them unaccompanied. It’s now under investigation for child labor violations. This is Newsom’s California.”
The state has increasingly found itself on the frontline of the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration, with anti-ICE protests erupting in downtown Los Angeles last month.
The president responded by deploying the National Guard and active-duty Marines to maintain peace, despite the opposition of Gov. Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass, who expressed concern that the show of force would only exacerbate the situation.
The tensions have since been exacerbated by incidents such as the tackling of Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla as he attempted to ask a question at a press conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and controversial comments from the Vice Mayor of Cudahy, urging local “cholos” to rise up and protect the community.
Four men were arrested earlier this week for allegedly using homemade spike traps to attempt to impede the progress of another raid in Van Nuys by puncturing the tires on agents’ vehicles.
The situation has reportedly left the state’s Latino community living in fear and even going into hiding, regardless of their immigration status, with one man telling the press: “It’s like Anne Frank.”
President Trump is reportedly preparing to relax the rules to exempt farm laborers from his mass deportation push after realising that doing otherwise threatens to blow a huge hole in an important industry, a decision that would bring significant relief to California where farmers and ranchers are major employers and where seasonal migrant workers are all-important come harvest time.
Texas floodwaters damaged crops and endangered livestock. Now farmers and ranchers are cleaning up
Trump to tour flood zone on Friday as he touts ties to deep-red Texas
Carlos Alcaraz vs. Taylor Fritz and Novak Djokovic vs. Jannik Sinner are Wimbledon's semifinals
Trump threatens GOP senators: Vote to defund NPR/PBS or I’ll withhold my endorsement
Trump ended Obama’s flagship project to power Africa – but the dream is not dead
White House mercilessly mocked for posting pic of Trump as Superman
