By MES Dispatch Staff
The Briefing
- Video recorded Friday in North Hollywood shows a masked ICE agent pointing a gun at a bystander who was walking two dogs as agents arrested another man near the Ivy at NoHo apartments.
- The bystander told Los Angeles City Councilmember Adrin Nazarian that he stopped to pick up items the arrested man had dropped, and that the agent then pushed him into a bush, aimed a gun at him and pepper-sprayed him.
- The Department of Homeland Security said the bystander was armed with pepper spray and created an “unnecessarily dangerous, and precarious environment” for officers.
- DHS identified the man arrested as Angel Luis Gonzalez Lobo, 27, a Venezuelan national with a final order of removal who missed his immigration court date; he remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
- Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass called for an investigation and said she is engaging the California Attorney General’s office.
LOS ANGELES — A North Hollywood bystander says a masked ICE agent pointed a gun at his head Friday as federal agents arrested another man, an encounter captured on video by a neighbor, the Los Angeles Daily News reported.
The incident took place near the Ivy at NoHo apartment community on Vineland Place and Otsego Street. Video shows agents dragging the arrested man by his arms and legs toward a vehicle as he screamed.
The bystander, who was not named, gave an interview to Los Angeles City Councilmember Adrin Nazarian, who posted it on Instagram. He said he saw an agent chase and push a man to the ground, called out for witnesses and wanted to ensure the man was treated humanely. He said he stopped to pick up items that had fallen during the struggle and tried to return them. “I think the cop felt threatened by that,” he said, and the agent pulled out a gun and pepper-sprayed him. In the video, the agent’s weapon is seen inches from his face. The bystander was not detained and left the scene.
In an emailed statement Saturday, DHS said agents have faced a rise in assaults and death threats. It said that while officers were arresting a resisting man, “a bystander armed with pepper spray encountered the officers, creating a moment of chaos in an otherwise controlled scene.” The statement did not address the use of the gun or pepper spray.
DHS identified the arrested man as Angel Luis Gonzalez Lobo, 27, from Venezuela. The agency said an immigration judge had issued a final order of removal after he failed to appear for court, and that he “will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings and will receive due process.”
Neighbor Damari Butler, who recorded the video, told ABC7 the scene felt chaotic. He said agents came up on the arrested man without warning, and that he thought the bystander might be shot when the agent drew a gun.
Mayor Karen Bass called the incident unacceptable, said she is engaging the California Attorney General’s Office to investigate and prosecute any wrongdoing by federal agents, and referred the matter to U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on federal immigration enforcement oversight. Councilmember Nazarian said no one should be threatened for looking out for their community, and Councilmember Nithya Raman also criticized the arrest in a social media post.
The bystander urged others who witness immigration enforcement to record what they see.