Social media influencer Tatiana Martinez was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents while streaming live on TikTok to her thousands of followers.
The 24-year-old — whose full name is Leidy Tatiana Mafla-Martinez — was arrested on August 15 in downtown Los Angeles by federal agents who dragged her out of her Tesla. Videos of her arrest have now circulated online, and her attorney argues she was targeted because she used her social media platform to document ICE activity.
Video of the incident recorded from across the street appears to show at least three officers dragging Martinez out of her car. The officers held Martinez, who was screaming, by her limbs before putting her face down on the ground. Martinez can be heard shouting “wait, wait, I'll get out," in Spanish as she was placed on the ground, according to a translation by NBC News.
The footage also shows an individual, dressed in plain clothes, watching the arrest and speaking to the officers. One officer pushed the individual away after Martinez was dragged from the car.
Shortly after placing Martinez on the ground, one officer shouted, “Hey,” and ran off-screen. Someone had “unlawfully towed a government police vehicle” during the arrest, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told Newsweek.
Another video shows a witness yelling for someone to call 911 after Martinez went motionless on the ground, NBC News reports. Martinez reported shortness of breath during the arrest and was taken to a hospital, a DHS official told The Independent.
Martinez is now being detained in Calexico, California.
A DHS official said that Martinez, who is from Colombia, was detained following a DUI conviction in Los Angeles. Her attorney, Carlos Jurado, confirmed she was convicted in 2023.
The DHS official added that Martinez entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and was “released by the Biden administration.” However, Jurado told The Independent that Martinez "legally presented herself at the border.” Martinez was given a work permit after she was processed at the border and granted parole to enter the country, he said.
"When the DHS comes out and says that she's an illegal immigrant — she's just not. That's just factually incorrect," Jurado said.
Jurado said Martinez was targeted because she had documented ICE activity online for more than 40,000 followers. Officers made comments about her social media after she was released from the hospital, according to Jurado.
"One of the biggest points that was being made to her aggressively by officers was, 'Did you think that you were going to get away with recording our activities and there wouldn't be a consequence?' That was said to her many times by many different people while she was being held in Los Angeles," he said.
Jurado previously told ABC 7 that officers didn't mention the DUI during the arrest. He also noted that Martinez initially didn't exit her car because officers didn't present a warrant.
Martinez still has bruises on her arms from the arrest, Jurado said after visiting her in Calexico. She has a preliminary hearing scheduled for Thursday.
