‘Parents can’t help you now’: ICE accused of violently attacking and detaining two American minors en route to join the Marines
"They tossed him like a sack."
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) remains steadfast in its efforts to detain and deport those they consider illegal aliens across the country, including those enlisting in the country’s military forces. Two young American citizens were said to be on the way to join the Marine Corps when they were apprehended and attacked by ICE agents.
In a video shared by Telemundo, ICE agents were caught on footage opening a red car in the middle of the road before forcefully dragging out a 17-year-old teen. The agents pushed the teen to the ground and repeatedly punched him in the face as he lay on the road while they detained him. On the other side of the car, another teen appeared to be in distress from the effects of pepper spray as he tried to seek help from bystanders.
The incident reportedly occurred near Santos Livas Elementary School in Alamo, Texas, and the teens were seemingly targeted because they were allegedly recording ICE agents arresting a couple outside of the school from a distance.
They repeatedly told ICE they were minors
“They are beating him. He’s a minor,” the person recording the footage said. “They tossed him like a sack.” The teen who received several blows from the agents was eventually forced into the back of the agents’ unmarked vehicle.
The agents turned their attention to the other teen, identified as Luis Ochoa, who reportedly ran to a nearby restaurant for help. Similar to his friend, Ochoa was shoved to the ground before being handcuffed.
Ochoa was said to have informed ICE agents that he was a U.S. citizen and that he hadn’t violated any law. Despite his explanation, the agents allegedly didn’t care. “I had my hands on the steering wheel. It wasn’t necessary for them to pepper spray me, or do all that to me, or laugh at me,” Ochoa told the outlet. “And while I’m 17 years old, I kept telling them.” According to Ochoa, the agents told him that they “don’t give a d***” and that his “parents can’t help you now.”
Ochoa will no longer join the Marines
Ochoa said he and his friend were en route to deliver documents to enlist in the Marine Corps at the time of the incident. However, with ICE’s stunt, he decided against joining in the end. “How are they supposed to serve a country that doesn’t even uphold their basic rights?” Ochoa’s mother said.
The incident also left the family in fear that Ochoa would be taken to Mexico, with the teen claiming the agents were already considering transferring the two friends. In the end, Ochoa and his friend were released from detention after eight hours. It wasn’t clarified whether Ochoa and his friend received any charges following the ordeal.
This incident just adds to ICE’s growing list of violence against the country’s citizens, and it doesn’t seem like their arrest tactics will change any time soon while under the current administration.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
Follow The Mary Sue:
