CAMARILLO, Calif. (KABC) -- The Department of Homeland Security announced 200 arrests made during dual immigration raids at cannabis farms near Camarillo and the coastal city of Carpinteria Thursday.
According to CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott, 10 undocumented juveniles were found at Glass House Farms. He alleges the business is now under investigation for child labor violations.
According to the Department of Labor, the minimum age for agricultural employment is 14 outside of school hours and 12 with written parental consent. In California, you must be at least 12 years old to be hired as a farmworker.
The United Farm Workers Union released a statement saying in part:
"Farm workers are excluded from basic child labor laws and it is unfortunately not uncommon for teenagers to work in the fields. To be clear: detaining and deporting children is not a solution for child labor."
Fear of more immigration operations is mounting up after tensions flared when federal agents raided the cannabis farm in Camarillo. Families are now trying to find loved ones who were detained.
"This makes no freakin' sense. I've been trying to keep my emotions in check, but being here is just too much," said Guadalupe Torres, whose husband was taken by immigration agents.
Torres' husband, George Retes, is an Army veteran and U.S. citizen, and works as a security guard at Glass House Farms in the Camarillo area.
Retes’ vehicle remains outside Glass House Farms, and his wife says she’s called every law enforcement agency in the area, but nobody knows where her husband was taken.
"He really did try to leave, so I don’t know what’s going to happen from here. I really hope I get a phone call or something, because I’m getting torn apart. My kids are asking where their dad is. I keep having to lie, saying he’s at work," Torres said.
Retes’ daughter turns 3 years old on Saturday.
"He has a bad back and he’s disabled and it clearly says it in the back of his car that he’s a disabled veteran. This is how you’re going to treat U.S. citizens?" said Destinee Magana, Retes’ sister.
DHS said on Thursday that federal agents were serving a warrant at Glass House Farms for allegedly harboring undocumented workers.
Glass House Brands issued a statement on the raids at its facilities, saying:
"Yesterday, Glass House Brands received immigration and naturalization warrants. As per the law, we verified that the warrants were valid and we complied. Workers were detained and we are assisting to provide them legal representation. Glass House has never knowingly violated applicable hiring practices and does not and has never employed minors. We do not expect this to affect operations moving forward. We will provide additional details when applicable."
The raid lasted hours and agents faced off with protesters. Some people who attended the demonstration were seen throwing rocks at federal vehicles as they left.
After witnessing the clash between federal agents and protesters during the immigration raids, President Donald Trump on Friday directed Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Border Czar Tom Homan to authorize ICE and other law enforcement officers to arrest anyone they believe is assaulting them "using whatever means is necessary."
"I am giving Total Authorization for ICE to protect itself," Trump said.
In addition to family members gathering at the Glass House Farms' gates looking for loved ones, some employees who had been hiding inside since the start of the raid came out.
"There's still people that are still hiding. They're afraid. They hide in the trunks of the cars or in the refrigerators," said immigrant rights advocate Alicia Flores.
Flores went to Glass House Farms trying to help families find their loved ones.
"We are recommending the Mexican consulate if they're from Mexico. The protection department can locate them. Also, we talked to our congresswoman Julia Brownley and they said that we can give her number and they can look for these family members," Flores said.