A tense showdown occurred on Thursday between protesters and federal agents conducting a raid at a southern California farm. Federal officers used smoke canisters to try to disperse the crowd during the incident.
Border Patrol and Customs and Border Protection vehicles blocked the roads in the largely agricultural area of Camarillo, California. Military-style vehicles were present, and a helicopter was seen hovering above the scene.
Television footage showed a large group of protesters gathering on a road amid the fields, with uniformed agents facing them. As the crowd retreated, white and green smoke filled the air. Some protesters were seen shouting at agents dressed in camouflage, helmets, and gas masks. It remains unclear why the authorities employed smoke canisters or if chemical substances such as tear gas were used.
Another image showed individuals sitting against a wall with their hands bound, though it was uncertain if they were workers or protesters. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to requests for comments.
Glass House Farms announced on social media that it had been visited by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials and stated that they fully complied with the agents’ search warrants.
The farm is authorized to grow cannabis in Ventura County, utilizing half of its space for that purpose while the other half grows tomatoes and cucumbers.
Judith Ramos shared that she received a call from her father, who works in the tomato fields, informing her that immigration authorities were at his workplace. “He told me to take care of everything if anything happened,” said Ramos, who expressed concern for her two younger siblings.
Upon arriving at the farm, Ramos saw a bus taking people away and joined others in protesting when agents deployed crowd control measures. “They didn’t want us getting closer, and they started to spray,” Ramos recounted. She experienced some discomfort in her eyes due to the agents’ actions and had to wash her face with milk.
Ramos is currently uncertain about her father’s whereabouts, having lost contact with him for over an hour, while his truck remains at the worksite.
At this time, it is unknown which agencies participated in the raid. Federal immigration agents have intensified their operations in southern California, targeting car washes, farms, and Home Depot parking lots to arrest individuals, leading to widespread fear in immigrant communities.
The administration under former President Donald Trump utilized the National Guard to protect federal immigration officers during such raids, and just this week, sent a large convoy equipped with weapons and horses to a park in Los Angeles.
Andrew Dowd, a spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department, reported that emergency medical assistance was called to the area around 12:15 PM. Paramedics transported three people to nearby hospitals, but details regarding injuries or medical emergencies have not been disclosed, nor is there clarity on the purpose of the agents’ presence.
