CAMARILLO, Calif. - A day after a massive immigration raid occurred at a cannabis farm in Ventura County, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed that 200 undocumented immigrants were arrested.
ICE and CBP officers raided Glass House Farms, a licensed cannabis facility, in Camarillo and Carpinteria Thursday morning after executing a criminal warrant.
During the raid in Camarillo, protesters and agents clashed for several hours, with the incident eventually turning violent. Video from the scene showed tear gas and smoke bombs being thrown into the crowd multiple times throughout the day to push back protesters. SkyFOX video captured a white SUV driving into a crowd of people. Protesters were also seen throwing rocks at vans trying to leave the area.
In a statement Friday, DHS said 500 people attempted to disrupt the federal operation. Four U.S. citizens were arrested for assaulting or resisting officers. Video from the scene also appeared to show a protester firing a gun at officers. The FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest of that individual.
On Friday, DHS confirmed that 200 undocumented immigrants were arrested at both sites in Carpinteria and Camarillo. DHS also said several undocumented minors were found on the property.
"@ICEgov and @CBP law enforcement rescued 8 unaccompanied migrant children from what looks like exploitation, violation of child labor laws and potentially human trafficking or smuggling. We take our responsibility to protect children seriously and will continue to work with federal law enforcement to ensure that children are safe and protected," DHS posted on X after the raids.
Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott posted on X that 10 undocumented minors at the Camarillo farm, eight of them unaccompanied, were found, and Glass House is now under investigation for child labor violations.
United Farm Workers union said it's not uncommon for teenagers to work in the fields.
Three senior federal officials said DHS executed a criminal judicial search warrant that was signed off by a federal judge after obtaining evidence that Glass House Farms was employing undocumented immigrants.
Glass House disputed those claims, saying in a post, "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."
According to United Farm Workers, at least one farmworker died, and several others were injured during the raid.
Jaime Alanis fell 30 feet off a roof as he was being chased by ICE agents, his family said in a GoFundMe. He was taken off life support Friday. According to the Associated Press, relatives of Alanis said he called his wife in Mexico during the raid to tell her immigration agents had arrived and that he was hiding with others inside the farm.
"The next thing we heard was that he was in the hospital," Juan Duran, Alanis' brother-in-law, said in Spanish.
Alanis had a broken neck, fractured skull and a rupture in an artery that pumps blood to the brain, said his niece Yesenia.
UFW also confirmed in a statement that other farmworkers were critically injured during the raid. Their exact injuries are unknown. According to the union, other workers - including US citizens - remain unaccounted for.
What's next:
The investigation into immigration and potential child labor violations is ongoing, DHS said.
"While ICE and CBP officers are being assaulted by rioters and dodging bullets to save children, Sanctuary politicians are demonizing ICE and CBP. We will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law anyone who assaults or doxes federal law enforcement," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.