“You look like someone we’re looking for”: ICE accused of detaining US citizens over appearance

As the number of immigrants detained by ICE surpasses record levels—now around 55,000 people—US citizens have not been spared.

ICE raids continue across the country under the Trump administration’s sweeping deportation policy, and American citizens are increasingly caught in the dragnet.

This is not to suggest that the previous administration never targeted US citizens. In fact, the British outlet The Guardian reported that between 2015 and 2020, ICE deported 70 US citizens without legal justification, arrested 674, and detained 121. However, the nature of the Trump administration’s deportation efforts has led to a growing number of stories from US citizens unjustly arrested by ICE.

US citizens detained from coast to coast

Shortly after Donald Trump’s return to the White House, his immigration crackdown began, and some of its first victims were Native Americans. Various tribal organizations, including the Native American Rights Fund (NARF), advised Indigenous communities to carry tribal identification, a driver’s license or state ID, or a passport at all times.

NARF’s advice was part of a “Know Your Rights” factsheet, which emphasized that ICE has no authority to detain US citizens. The guidance urged individuals to treat any arrest as if it were being made by local police or another law enforcement agency with proper authority. Citizens have the right to remain silent, to deny search requests, and to request an attorney. If ICE comes to your home, you are not required to answer the door unless they have a warrant signed by a judge.

On June 3, Elzon Lemus, a 23-year-old electrician and US citizen, was riding in the passenger seat of his coworker’s car en route to their first job site when ICE pulled them over in Nassau County, New York. Lemus says the agents did not identify themselves and immediately began asking for identification. He refused several times, but the agents warned him that his refusal “may not work out well for [him].”

“You look like someone we’re looking for,” one agent said in an interaction that was filmed. Lemus believes he and his coworkers were racially profiled. Agents handcuffed him, searched his belongings, found his ID, and then released him. After the incident, the New Yorker said that he felt his rights had been “thrown out the window” and expressed how powerless he felt.

More recently, across the country in Los Angeles, Andrea Velez—a US citizen and Cal Poly Pomona graduate—was detained by ICE during a raid in the city’s downtown. Velez lives in a mixed-status household and had just been dropped off at work by her mother and sister when she was detained. Her mother, a legal resident, described the incident as a “kidnapping” and filed a police report. Velez was later charged with assaulting an officer. During her first court appearance, the judge set bond at $5,000, allowing for her release.

ICE has no legal authority to detain or arrest US citizens. The growing number of citizens caught up in the agency’s actions is raising serious concerns about racial profiling and the constitutionality of these practices as the Trump administration pushes to deport millions.

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