Fontana police officers conducting a narcotics investigation in Cudahy had several vehicles damaged on Oct. 30 after a crowd mistakenly believed they were federal immigration agents. At least three cars had flattened tires. The officers had arrived to search a home.
According to NBC Los Angeles, the officers were conducting their narcotics investigation on Live Oak Street near Florence and Wilcox avenues when the crowd gathered and some bystanders mistakenly believed they were federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Fontana police, in a statement reported by the San Bernardino Sun, said the narcotics-unit officers were dressed in civilian clothing.
According to the department, officers identified themselves as Fontana police and explained their operation, but the crowd grew increasingly disruptive despite those explanations.
Vehicles Damaged During Incident
Images from the scene showed at least three cars with flattened tires, the station's report noted, and no officers were injured. Fontana police said crowd members vandalized the vehicles.
The officers sought crowd-control assistance from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department so they could safely continue their investigation. Authorities are investigating the vandalism and looking for those responsible, and Fontana police said criminal charges will be pursued against them.
A Mistaken Identity in Cudahy
The Cudahy incident involved a narcotics investigation, and some bystanders mistakenly believed the officers were ICE agents.
The confusion in Cudahy comes amid heightened public wariness of federal immigration operations across Southern California; on Oct. 30, the same day as the Cudahy incident, the Los Angeles Times reported that video showed a masked federal agent pointing a handgun inches from a bystander's face during an apparent immigration enforcement operation in North Hollywood.
