An American citizen was forcibly detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at an Alabama construction site after the agents falsely claimed his proof of citizenship was fake.
On Wednesday, Leonardo García Venegas, 25, had just returned to his workplace from purchasing materials when he was suddenly approached by ICE agents, as reported by Noticias Telemundo.
In video shared of the incident online, obtained by BreakThrough News, Venegas can be seen bent over as one agent tugs on his arm. Another agent then comes to grab his other arm, and together the two push him to the ground.
“He’s a citizen! What you’re doing is illegal!”
— BreakThrough News (@BTnewsroom) May 23, 2025
ICE raided an Alabama construction site and violently dragged a U.S. citizen from his workplace. He was detained, then released hours later. pic.twitter.com/mbiYDyGLEZ
"He's not even doing nothing wrong!" a man from behind the camera says in English. "What the f***. He's a citizen, bro. He's a f***ing citizen!"
"I hope he's got his s*** on him," another man could be heard saying.
Off to the side, another agent can be seen holding down another worker.
Venegas said that when he returned to the construction site, ICE had already detained several workers, including his 34-year-old brother, who is reportedly in the country illegally.
But Venegas was born in Florida. He said when he tried to record the incident, the agents knocked his phone out of his hand. Venegas told the agents to review his documents, but they reportedly dismissed them, telling Venegas they were fake.
"They took out my wallet, took out my ID. And they told me it was fake. Said it wasn't valid and that it was fake. My ID. They handcuffed me and they handcuffed me really tight," he told Noticias Telemundo, translated from Spanish.
As he was being detained, Venegas said he told the agents to "check my social security number in the computer," insisting that there had been "an error." Hours later, he was released from ICE detention.
This is not the first time a U.S. citizen has accidentally been detained by ICE amid President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration. In April, ICE refused to release a Georgia man detained during a traffic stop even after his birth certificate was presented to a judge.
Trump's bid to fulfill his promise for "mass deportations" has triggered significant legal backlash, particularly after his administration flew more than 200 detainees to a mega-prison in El Salvador. One of the men sent there, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, garnered national attention after it was revealed that he was a Maryland resident.
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