Representative Dave Min Leads 11 Members of Congress in Letter to DHS Inspector General Seeking Answers Related to ICE Agents’ Assaults on Civilians and Elected Officials
Rep. Min: “These tactics not only erode our public safety but raise a serious risk that criminal gangs might adopt the same approach, including donning masks and sunglasses and refusing to provide identification or to state who they work for even as they claim to be federal agents.”
Washington, D.C. — Representative Dave Min (CA-47) led 10 members of Congress in a new letter to Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Joseph Cuffari seeking answers to questions related to the many documented instances of lawbreaking and inappropriate actions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents. In the past few months, agents affiliated with these government agencies have assaulted and arrested a wide array of individuals, including lawful permanent residents and U.S. citizens, federal, state, and local officials, and peaceful protesters. They have arrested bystanders and even threatened them at gunpoint for merely asking questions or filming ICE agents.
The full letter is available here.
These agents have often conducted these activities while wearing full facial masks and civilian clothing, and refusing to identify themselves or their agency when prompted. Given the current assault on immigrant communities throughout Southern California, while administration officials have claimed this anonymity is necessary because ICE agents are being doxxed at high rates, they have presented no evidence to support this claim. At the same time, the unprofessional and frequently violent behavior of ICE agents has caused many of Rep. Min’s constituents to ask whether claims that ICE is offering bounties to outside contractors have any legitimacy and also raised serious concerns about the vetting processes for new ICE personnel.
Rep Min wrote, “I write to express our grave concerns about the conduct of people purporting to be agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), all of which fall under your jurisdiction. As you are aware, these personnel have been witnessed, and frequently recorded, assaulting and arresting people, including lawful permanent residents and U.S. citizens, without probable cause or a warrant. They have been observed assaulting a wide array of individuals, including elected officials at the local, state, and federal levels. They have fired flash bombs, rubber bullets, and other ordinance into peaceful crowds.”
Among other things, the letter asks what background checks were used to vet new personnel hired or retained by ICE, DHS, and CBP since President Trump took office, and whether any of these new agents were ever convicted of violent crimes, including related to the January 6, 2025 riots, or were ever affiliated with domestic terror organizations such as the white supremacist group the Proud Boys. The letter also asks whether any of the ICE agents who have been observed assaulting civilians have been subjected to any disciplinary personnel.
The letter was signed by Representatives Carbajal (CA-24), Simon (CA-12), Chu (CA-28), Cisneros (CA-31), Goldman (NY-10), Costa (CA-21), Tran (CA-45), Lofgren (CA-18), Panetta (CA-19), Rivas (CA-29), and Correa (CA-46).
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