DHS: US Citizen Detained for Obstructing Arrest of Illegal Immigrant

Leonardo Garcia Venegas was detained by immigration agents at his worksite in Foley, Alabama.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers listen during a briefing in Silver Spring, Md., on Jan. 27, 2025. Alex Brandon/AP Photo

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Saturday defended its detention of a Florida-born citizen who allegedly interfered during a targeted immigration enforcement operation. He was released after being restrained and questioned over his response to the arrest of his brother, an illegal immigrant.

Leonardo Garcia Venegas, 25, was detained on May 21 by federal immigration authorities while at his worksite in Foley, Alabama.

Video of the arrest shows Venegas at what appears to be a construction site being restrained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

The footage shows a struggle between Venegas and an agent before a second agent comes in to assist. An individual who was not shown in the footage appeared to defend Garcia and reassured ICE agents that he was a U.S. citizen.

NTD reached out to ICE, but the agency declined to offer additional information. ICE instead pointed to the statement offered by DHS.

In that statement, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said that Venegas prevented ICE agents from doing their job.

“During a targeted worksite operation, the individual in question attempted to obstruct & prevent the lawful arrest of an illegal alien,” she wrote in a statement on the social media platform X. “He physically got in between agents and the subject they were attempting to arrest, refusing to comply with numerous verbal commands. Anyone who actively obstructs law enforcement in the performance of their sworn duties, including U.S. citizens, will face consequences which include arrest.”

NTD also reached out to DHS for additional details but did not receive an immediate response.

In an interview with Telemundo, Venegas claimed that he wasn’t resisting arrest, rather he was trying to take out his phone when an ICE agent threw it on the ground and grabbed him. He also said that the arresting agents dismissed his REAL ID as fake before they handcuffed him.

The man’s family friend, Shelah Venegas, had recorded the video and posted it on TikTok.

“This happened this morning 05/21 in south Alabama,” she wrote on TikTok. “A family friend was harrased by these unprofessional federal agents.!! I want to make it known this young man is a US CITIZEN !! He was working normally and as soon as he was approached made it known he was a citizen and was still getting put in handcuffs.”

NTD reached out to Shelah Venegas through the social media platform but did not receive a response by publication time.

Leonardo Garcia Venegas was released from the police vehicle after providing his Social Security number, his friend said.

His brother, however, was not released. He is not a U.S. citizen and not in the country legally, according to Venegas. The brothers live together, and their parents are from Mexico. They are trying to find a lawyer but have been told that it’s difficult to sue a federal agent or local law enforcement officer, their cousin said.

According to the White House, illegal border encounters are down by 95 percent since Trump took office.

From NTD News