RAFU WIRE SERVICE AND STAFF REPORTS
On the same day that Mayor Karen Bass and Westside leaders called for the end of immigration raids throughout the city, federal agents on Aug. 14 conducted a wide-spread operation in Little Tokyo.
U.S. Immigration and Customers Enforcement and Border Patrol agents began their operation just outside the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo, where Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered a speech about a congressional redistricting map plan in response to Texas’ redistricting effort.
U.S. Border Patrol Sector Commander Gregory Bovino told reporters the agency was conducting roving immigration enforcement patrols in the area. One individual was taken into custody, Bovino said.
“Know we’re here making Los Angeles a safer place since we don’t have politicians that’ll do that. We do that ourselves. So, that’s why we’re here today, as you can see already, making it a safer place,” Bovino told Fox LA. “We’re glad to be here. We are not going anywhere.”
Bovino added that he didn’t know that Newsom was inside the museum hosting a news conference.
The event, which was broadcast on C-SPAN, was held in JANM’s Democracy Center as the main hall on the other side of the plaza is closed for renovation. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Rep. Judy Chu (D-Pasadena) were among the elected officials in attendance.
On social media, Newsom’s office shared a video of Bovino and Border Patrol agents outside JANM. The social media post read: “Donald Trump has sent armed agents to our rally. We will not be intimated.”
Arriving at Little Tokyo after ICE agents departed, Bass criticized the federal government for their raid.
“There is no way this was a coincidence,” Bass told reporters. “This was widely publicized that the governor and many of our other elected officials were having a press conference here to talk about redistricting, and they decided they were going to come and thumb their nose in front of the governor’s face. Why would they do that?”
She called the federal government’s actions “unbelievably disrespectful” and a “provocative act.”
“They’re talking about disorder in Los Angeles, and they are the source of the disorder in Los Angeles right now,” Bass added. “This is just completely unacceptable. This is an administration and Customs and Border Patrol that has gone amok.”
The total number of people who were detained by federal agents was unclear.
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem addressed the raid during an appearance on Fox News as video of the operation was shown.
“Every single one of our ICE and Border Patrol operations is built on information, on investigative work,” Noem said.
She said an operation is planned “because of who they think could be in that area and what they have for information that shows there are illegal criminals there. Remember we’re focusing on the worst of the worst.”
Noem said she didn’t know specifics about the Los Angeles raid outside Newsom’s event, “but it was based on the investigative work that all law enforcement officers do for every single operation they conduct to make sure they’re getting dangerous criminals off our streets.”
JANM Statement
The museum issued the following statement: “JANM is outraged by the presence of armed federal agents on its Norman Y. Mineta Democracy Plaza today, an effort to intimidate speakers at the Museum’s Daniel K. Inouye National Center for the Preservation of Democracy (Democracy Center), which was the chosen venue for a press conference held by Gov. Gavin Newsom and other state and federal elected officials about California’s redistricting initiative.
“The Democracy Center explores the rights, freedoms, and fragility of democracy, helping to build bridges, and find common ground between people of diverse backgrounds and opinions. As the press conference began, around 75 armed Customs and Border Patrol agents swarmed the sidewalk in front of the museum and arrested at least one passerby.
“JANM’s Historic Building and Mineta Democracy Plaza is the site where in 1942, Los Angeles-area Japanese Americans were ordered to assemble for forced removal to concentration camps during World War II.”
“We are outraged and deeply distressed that armed federal agents came onto our campus — making arrests on the very ground where, in 1942, Japanese American families were forced to board buses bound for concentration camps,” said Ann Burroughs, JANM president and CEO. “It was a deliberate act of provocation and intimidation.
“The parallels are stark: entire communities were forcibly removed from the West Coast in 1942 and today our immigrant brothers and sisters face the terror of ICE and CBP raids across the country. It was a miscarriage of justice then, and it is a miscarriage of justice now.
“Our plaza is hallowed ground — a Ground Zero point in the civil rights history of this country. That history is part of our DNA and the reason we exist — to confront difficult truths about race, identity, and the fragility of democracy, to stand up to authoritarianism.
“The Democracy Center was chosen by Gov. Gavin Newsom for a major press conference on California’s redistricting initiative — a choice that speaks volumes for the visibility of our mission and the importance of the work we do every day to defend the principles that define a free and just society.”
The Little Tokyo Service Center also issued a statement: “Yesterday, Aug. 14, 2025, armed CBP agents were present in Little Tokyo at the Japanese American National Museum plaza, mere yards away from where Gov. Newsom and other federal, state and local elected officials were gathered for a press conference at JANM’s Democracy Center. Reports confirm at least one person was detained off the street.
“Yesterday’s situation was witnessed and documented by the Little Tokyo Rapid Response Network, consisting of community-based organizations and individuals including Little Tokyo Service Center (LTSC) staff. The network provided support and resources to businesses, residents and community members affected by the incident.
“It is no coincidence that this show of force occurred at the same time and place as Gov. Newson’s press conference. And it is no coincidence that this unlawful and militarized kidnapping took place on the very corner where thousands of Japanese Americans were unlawfully and militarily assembled and incarcerated during World War II.
“As this administration concurrently threatens to erase national monuments like WWII Japanese American incarceration camps, we stand on the dangerous brink of history repeating itself. But our community knows the signs and the consequences all too well. And it’s our obligation to stand up when injustices target immigrant communities, like our community was targeted a mere 80 years ago.
“While we at LTSC remain outraged, we will not be shaken. We continue to adapt to, respond to and support our community’s needs, as we have for the past 45 years. Amidst this administration’s ongoing chaos and trauma, we urge our community to prioritize self care, stay focused, stay connected, and provide support where you can.
“Thank you to everyone who reached out and offered their support after yesterday’s events. Our community has proven its strength and resilience time and time again.”
Asian Democrats of Los Angeles County said, “Today’s massive ICE and CBP raid in Little Tokyo — the heart of L.A. City’s Japanese community — is unacceptable. Against the backdrop of the Japanese American National Museum, where people can learn about the dark history of Japanese American internment camps, we are now witnessing history repeat itself.
“Trump and his thugs are using fear and cruelty to make a political statement in retaliation to Gov. Newsom’s stand against Republicans’ undemocratic redistricting efforts. An attack on one community is an attack on all — we must continue to protect each other with everything we’ve got.”
Westside Leaders Oppose ICE
Earlier on Aug. 14, Bass joined Westside leaders to reiterate their call for the federal government to end immigration raids throughout the city, which have continued despite a federal court order limiting the scope of immigration enforcement operations in the area.
Bass reiterated the federal government’s aggressive and widespread immigration enforcement tactics are impacting every community in Los Angeles. She emphasized that Angelenos will remain united as a city of immigrants.
“Every part of the city has felt the impact of these raids and our local economy has taken a major blow because of it. By standing together, we have won clear victories in the courts that have shown that these raids are unconstitutional and we will continue to hold this administration accountable,” Bass said.
Fifth District City Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, who represents West L.A. neighborhoods, joined Bass alongside a group of women leaders, attorneys, faith leaders and residents, who echoed Bass’ message.
“These raids are not isolated to one part of our city. They affect all of us,” Yaroslavsky said in a statement. “Los Angeles has been clear-eyed about what is happening from Day One, and has taken every action available to us to stop them and protect our communities. This has always been a city of immigrants, of dreamers, of people building better futures.”
ICE agents began enforcement operations in the region on June 6. In July, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order preventing the government from stopping individuals in violation of the Fourth Amendment and requiring the government to provide detained individuals with access to counsel.
The federal government appealed the ruling, but a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to put a stay on the ruling.
The federal government has appealed the issue to the U.S. Supreme Court.
ICE raids have increased in the city. Two weeks agp, ICE and the Department of Homeland Security conducted a raid at a Home Depot on Wilshire Boulevard, where agents hid in a Penske truck and descended on day laborers at the site.
On X, U.S. Attorney for Los Angeles Bill Essayli acknowledged the operation, writing, “For those who thought immigration enforcement had stopped in Southern California, think again. The enforcement of federal law is not negotiable, and there are no sanctuaries from the reach of the federal government.”
Essayli defended the raid as being within the scope of reasonable suspicion.
On Aug. 11, Los Angeles Unified School District officials reported that a 15-year-old boy with disabilities was placed in handcuffs by Border Patrol agents in what was described as a case of mistaken identity. The boy was waiting with his grandmother in their vehicle while a relative was signing up for classes at Arleta High School.
DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But in a social media post, DHS wrote, “Allegations that Border Patrol targeted Arleta High School are FALSE. Agents were conducting a targeted operation on criminal illegal alien Cristian Alexander Vasquez-Alvarenga — a Salvadoran national and suspected MS-13 pledge with prior criminal convictions in the broader vicinity of Arleta.”