A Chico resident from Honduras detained by ICE the morning of Oct. 9 is awaiting deportation at the California City Immigration Processing Center in Kern County, sources told ChicoSol.
As the 26-year-old immigrant and his older brother left their homes to go to a painting job, they were met by ICE agents. Dark SUVs blocked their truck.
The older brother showed agents his California Real ID, proving his legal status, and was left alone. The younger brother, whose name has not been given to ChicoSol, was detained. Family members said he has been in Chico seven years, was working in construction and has not been in any trouble with law enforcement.
One of the agents said in broken Spanish, “A departure voluntary. No problem. Understand?” according to a video posted on Facebook.
The detained man told a family member that agents said they had been watching him that morning. They said they saw him “take his daughter to school,” and followed him to Citrus Elementary and back. They said they noticed he went into his house and changed his shirt.
Citrus Elementary did not respond to an effort by ChicoSol to confirm the presence of ICE at the school.
Later, the younger brother later told him that once he was in custody, ICE agents said they had “a long list of people” to detain and would return to Chico soon.
The accounts suggest that immigration agents gave the younger brother deportation papers to sign almost immediately after he was in ICE custody. An agent told him he would be jailed for two years if he didn’t agree to deportation.
The threat of jail time scared him, and he signed papers agreeing to deportation, said a family member. The relative said efforts are underway to seek legal help.
The ICE agents who arrested the Honduran met up with other agents at a nearby grocery store parking lot before taking the Chico man to 650 Capitol Mall in Sacramento, a family member said. He was held temporarily before being sent south.
A neighbor described the man who was detained as “a hard-working person” who provides for his family and “didn’t bother anybody.” A relative echoed that sentiment, saying, “He was a good person; a hard-working person. He took care of people.”
NorCal Resist Chico reported the West Fourth Street detention within an hour after it took place. Neighborhood sources said that NorCal Resist trained observers were posted in the area this morning because of fear that ICE would return.
Impact on families
In the wake of the detention, many people – regardless of their immigration status – are scared, a source told ChicoSol. Some in the immigrant community are staying home from work and not sending their children to school.
A relative said that children in the neighborhood know what happened and are having trouble sleeping. One drew a picture of a family member behind bars, she added.
The detained man’s brother spoke to him after he was sent from Sacramento to a major detention center in Kern County. His brother told him the center is crowded, with detainees who have been there, in some cases, two years. He also said meals at the detention center are small, consisting of dried noodles and meat that hasn’t been fully cooked.
ICE ramping up and tracking people
On Oct. 5, ICE reportedly began a 45-day surge in immigrant detentions, regardless of whether they have violated laws apart from unauthorized border crossings. A few days later, also on Oct. 9, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an alert about ICE’s so-called “California Safe Operation.”
NorCal Resist Chico FaceBook posts note that ICE is active in Sacramento and Northern California. ChicoSol has not learned of further arrests in Butte County since Oct. 9.
Referring to the increased reports of federal immigration in some communities across California, Newsom urged Californians “to know their rights, stay safe and remain informed.” The governor criticized President Trump for “using fear and panic as a weapon — putting families at risk, undermining our economy, and terrorizing communities.”
The family of the detained Chico man is trying to adapt to the removal of an important figure. A relative said she’s seen videos prior to this showing immigration enforcement, but “it’s really hard to have it happen to your family.”
“Especially when you’re really close to them,” she said. “He didn’t deserve to have this happen to him. And I would like people to know that he was a good person. And it’s just really
hard to see people saying [offensive things] because they don’t know him, they don’t know his life.”
Lindajoy Fenley is senior editor at ChicoSol. Leslie Layton is editor.
This story was published in collaboration with Aqui Estamos / Here we Stand, an immigration reporting project.