Brian Gavidia was at work on West Olympic Boulevard in Montebello at about 4:30 p.m. Thursday when he was informed immigration brokers have been outdoors of his office.

Gavidia, 29, was born and raised in East Los Angeles and fixes and sells automobiles for a dwelling. He mentioned he stepped outdoors. And noticed 4 to 6 brokers.

Inside seconds, he mentioned, considered one of them — sporting a vest with “Border Patrol Federal Agent” written on the again — approached him.

“Stop right there,” he mentioned the agent informed him. Then the agent questioned whether or not Gavidia was American.

“I’m an American citizen,” Gavidia mentioned he informed the agent at the least thrice.

Regardless of his responses, the agent pushed him right into a metallic gate, put his palms behind his again and requested him what hospital he was born in, Gavidia mentioned.

Rattled by the encounter, he mentioned he couldn’t bear in mind the hospital.

Video taken by a pal reveals two brokers holding Gavidia in opposition to a blue fence. He tells them they’re twisting his arm.

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“I’m American, bro!” Gavidia mentioned within the video.

“What hospital were you born?” the agent requested once more, this time recorded within the video.

“I don’t know dawg!” he mentioned. “East L.A. bro! I can show you: I have my f—ing Real ID.”

His pal, who Gavidia didn’t identify, narrated the video. Because the incident continued, he mentioned: “These guys, literally based off of skin color! My homie was born here!” The pal mentioned Gavidia was being questioned “just because of the way he looks. “

Gavidia said he gave the Border Patrol agent his Real ID, but the agent never returned it to him. The agent also took his phone and kept it for 20 minutes, he said, before finally returning it.

Even after the agent saw his ID, Gavidia said, he never apologized.

In a response to questions from the Times, U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not answer questions about the encounter with Gavidia.

The agency said in a statement that it is “conducting targeted immigration enforcement in support of ICE operations across the Los Angeles area. Enforcing immigration law is not optional — it’s essential to protecting America’s national security, public safety, and economic strength.”

The assertion continued: “Every removal of an illegal alien helps restore order and reinforce the rule of law.”

Pressed by The Instances for solutions about that particular encounter, a CBP spokesperson mentioned: “The statement provided is the only info available about the operation at this time.”

The Division of Homeland Safety didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

Gavidia mentioned one other pal was arrested that afternoon on the identical location. His identify is Javier Ramirez, and he, too, is an American citizen. Tomas De Jesus, Ramirez’s cousin and his lawyer, mentioned immigration brokers had entered a personal enterprise, “without a warrant without a probable cause, to warrant entering into a place like that.”

De Jesus mentioned his cousin started alerting folks to the presence of the brokers. He mentioned he solely discovered of his cousin’s whereabouts on Friday afternoon and mentioned authorities are accusing him of “resisting arrest, assaulting people.”

“We’re still conducting an investigation to really understand and ascertain the facts of the case,” De Jesus mentioned. De Jesus mentioned he referred to as the Metropolitan Detention Heart and recognized himself as an lawyer wishing to talk together with his consumer, however he was informed attorneys weren’t allowed to see their purchasers in the meanwhile.

“I was not given permission, I was not given access to even speak to him on the phone,” he mentioned.

Montebello Mayor Salvador Melendez, who watched video of the encounter with Gavidia, referred to as the scenario “just extremely frustrating.

“It just seems like there’s no due process,” he mentioned. “They’re just getting folks that look like our community and taking them and questioning them.”

Melendez mentioned he bought a name from a resident when immigration brokers have been on Olympic Boulevard. Melendez mentioned he heard they have been going out to different places within the metropolis, too.

“They’re going for a specific look, which is a look of our Latino community, our immigrant community,” he mentioned.

Gavidia mentioned his mom is Colombian and his father is Salvadoran. They’re Americans.

“He violated my rights as an American citizen,” Gavidia mentioned, his voice shaking with anger as he spoke over the telephone from his enterprise Friday. “It was the worst experience I ever felt. I felt honestly like I was going to die. He literally racked a chamber in his AR-15.”

Gavidia‘s clothes were dirty from work, and he said he figured that’s partly why brokers questioned him.

“I’m legal,” he mentioned. “I speak perfect English. I also speak perfect Spanish. I’m bilingual, but that doesn’t mean that I have to be picked out, like ‘This guys seems Latino; this guy seems a little bit dirty.’ I’m working, guys. I’m an American. We work. I’m Latino. We work.”

He added: “It’s just scary, walking while brown, walking while dirty, coming home from work, there’s a high chance you might get picked up.”

Gavidia mentioned he nonetheless doesn’t have his Actual ID again. He went to the Division of Motor Autos Friday morning and mentioned immigration brokers had stolen his ID. He mentioned he was informed he would wish to reapply for an additional one.

“He took my ticket to freedom,” Gavidia mentioned.