ICE raids sweep Gulf Coast neighborhoods, detaining dozens

ICE agents carried out numerous raids across Gulf Coast neighborhoods, detaining dozens of individuals in operations that sparked mixed reactions from residents and immigration advocates. One major raid occurred early Wednesday morning at the intersection of Madison Avenue and Alderman Street off Palm Beach Boulevard. Ana Hernandez, who woke to masked agents, armored vehicles, and machine guns in her neighborhood, said, "Every day people wake up just thinking about how they might be stopped for being undocumented, and these people work hard." ICE provided images of five men in custody with prior arrests, stating, "Every day, DHS is conducting law enforcement activities across the country to keep Americans safe. DHS does not discuss ongoing or future operations." Hillary Hogue, who documented one arrest, said, "If I thought any of these people were criminals, rapists, drug dealers, I would be packing their bags for them, but they're not." She added, "More than likely his family will not know where he is for months." ICE has not disclosed the total number of individuals detained, but Liz Schelper, who witnessed several arrests, described the operations as "like a scoop and run situation." In one incident, Lee County deputies pulled over a Mexican woman who was eight months pregnant, citing her vehicle’s dark windows. Her nephew, a U.S. citizen, was called to translate. He described his own encounter with ICE, saying, "They just grabbed me and put me in handcuffs and told me, 'Hey, you come over here.' I didn't do anything. I said, 'Get it off, or I'll sue you.'" Indera DeMine, an immigration attorney, said, "People are being detained in mass numbers here in Southwest Florida." She noted that the influx of cases is overwhelming the courts, adding, "The courtrooms in Miami, it's mass chaos there as well." DeMine also warned, "This country was built on immigrants and continuously relies on immigrants." Phones at DeMine Immigration have been ringing constantly, with DeMine stating, "I believe what we're seeing is these ICE officers have quotas they have to meet." While some residents have expressed support for the ICE raids on social media and through emails to Gulf Coast News, none agreed to speak publicly. Numerous sources have indicated that ICE agents are expected to continue making arrests through Friday. DOWNLOAD the free Gulf Coast News app for your latest news and alerts on breaking news, weather, sports, entertainment, and more on your phone or tablet. And check out the Very Local Gulf Coast app to stream news, entertainment and original programming on your TV.