Mass Raids Return to Los Angeles with Immigration Agents Hiding in a Moving Truck in ‘Operation Trojan Horse’

Massive immigration raids returned to Los Angeles as immigration agents arrived hidden inside a commercial moving truck in the parking lot of a store, then jumped out onto the street to chase immigrants, in an initiative called “Operation Trojan Horse”—despite a judge’s order prohibiting indiscriminate arrests.

The operation, which ended with the arrest of around 16 people, was caught on video by a FOX News reporter who was accompanying U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents inside the Penske rental truck used by officers to camouflage themselves.

Footage of the raid, which took place at a Home Depot store in the Westlake neighborhood—just a few blocks from MacArthur Park, known as the heart of the immigrant community in Los Angeles—was shared on social media by senior officials in President Donald Trump’s administration, who appeared defiant.

“For those who thought immigration enforcement had stopped in Southern California, think again,” said acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli in a message on X.

Last month, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting immigration agents from detaining individuals without reasonable suspicion, and from using race or apparent ethnicity; speaking Spanish or accented English; presence in a specific location; or the type of work a person does as grounds for arrest—in at least seven counties in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

The ruling was upheld last week by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which maintained the restriction. But Essayli remained defiant today, insisting that enforcement of federal law “is not negotiable” and that there are no sanctuaries that can “escape” the reach of the federal government.

In a statement to the Los Angeles Times, a Hispanic man who witnessed the operation said the Penske truck approached immigrants offering their labor in the store’s parking lot, and the driver told them in Spanish he was looking for workers.

Several men gathered around the truck offering their services, when masked agents jumped out of the back and began chasing them.

A video posted by the group Unión del Barrio shows how, after making arrests, the officers returned to the truck and drove away.

The company Penske distanced itself from the operation and said it was unaware the truck had been rented for that purpose.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told FOX that the operation was aimed at arresting suspects believed to be members of the Salvadoran gang MS-13.

In response, attorney Mark Rosenbaum, counsel for Public Counsel and part of the legal team that sued the Trump administration, said that in Los Angeles, “the American people were lied to” when the White House claimed these operations were focused on murderers, rapists, and drug traffickers.

The raid occurred two days after the plaintiffs’ attorneys urged Los Angeles residents to remain vigilant, fearing the Trump administration would not comply with the court order, and had called on the public to report any possible irregularities by immigration agents.

Meanwhile, Ron Gochez, spokesperson for the collective Unión del Barrio, warned the community on Wednesday about the operations, which he acknowledged had decreased in recent weeks, but “have not stopped.”

“Let’s not be complacent—we cannot trust that this president will respect court decisions that don’t go his way. Only an organized people can defend itself,” the activist emphasized.