A woman arrested during an immigration raid in downtown Los Angeles has been identified as Andrea Velez, a 32-year-old U.S. citizen. Velez’s family asserts that she did nothing to justify her detention, expressing their outrage and concern for her well-being.
The incident took place on Tuesday morning when Velez was dropped off for work at the corner of 9th and Spring. Her family alleges that agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) suddenly apprehended her. Footage captured the tense moment, showing Velez being placed into a dark-colored vehicle while LAPD officers looked on.
Her sister, Estrella Rosas, recounted the alarming scene, sharing how their mother witnessed the arrest from the rearview mirror. “My mom looked at the rear mirror and she saw how my sister was attacked from the back,” Rosas stated. “She said, ‘they’re kidnapping your sister,’ and I was bewildered; it happened so fast.”
Following the arrest, Velez’s family spent a full day in the dark about her whereabouts, not knowing how to reach her or if she was safe. In an emotional interview with Eyewitness News, Velez’s mother, Margarita Flores, expressed her heartbreak, noting that she never anticipated such a situation would befall a U.S. citizen.
By Wednesday, with the assistance of an attorney, the family discovered Velez’s location. “Just to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and have the full power of the federal government against you while your family can’t locate you is terrifying,” said Dominique Boubion, an attorney with the Carrillo Law Firm. Boubion noted the challenges they faced in finding Velez, stating, “It took us four hours to find her, and we’re attorneys. That’s outrageous.”
Despite gaining access to her, the legal representatives were still uninformed about any charges against her. Attorney Luis Carrillo voiced his concerns regarding the nature of the detainment, suggesting that racial profiling may have played a role. “What tripped her up is her skin color. In my opinion, these ICE agents are very racist. They focus on dark-skinned Latinos and pull them into jails,” Carrillo asserted.
Meanwhile, Velez’s family is struggling with fear and anxiety, feeling vulnerable now that their circumstances have been exposed to federal scrutiny. “When my daughter gets out, I don’t know how she’ll live her life from now on because I think we won’t be able to go outside anymore, since we’re already exposed—it’s a brutal attack because they are basically kidnapping people,” Flores lamented.
The family, originally from Mexico, has worked diligently for years to provide educational opportunities for their daughters. Velez graduated from college and is building a career in fashion, while her sister, Estrella, just finished high school and plans to attend Mount Saint Mary’s College.
Rosas expressed her emotional turmoil during this ordeal, stating, “I can’t even see some of the videos because it just hurts me so much. That’s like the last time I saw her, and I share a room with her, so last night was pretty hard for me. We hope to get her back home soon.”
Velez is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, where her family and legal team are hopeful that they will finally receive clarity on the charges against her and the possibility of setting bail at an affordable rate to secure her release.
The LAPD also faced scrutiny due to their involvement, as officers were reported to be in the vicinity during the ICE operation. In response, the LAPD stated that their officers were initially responding to a report of a possible kidnapping. They indicated that once they realized it was an immigration operation, their role shifted to assisting with crowd control, clarifying that they did not make any arrests themselves.
image source from：abc7
