A U.S. Army veteran who was arrested during an immigration raid at a Southern California marijuana farm last week said Wednesday he was sprayed with tear gas and pepper spray before being dragged from his vehicle and pinned down by federal agents who arrested him.
George Retes, 25, who works as a security guard at Glass House Farms in Camarillo, said he was arriving to work on July 10 when several federal agents surrounded his car and despite identifying himself as a U.S. citizen, broke his window, peppered sprayed him and dragged him out.
“It took two officers to nail my back and then one on my neck to arrest me even though my hands were already behind my back,” Retes said.
Retes was taken to the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles where he said he was put in a special cell and checked on each day after he became emotionally distraught because he was missing his 3-year-old daughter’s birthday party Saturday.
He said that the federal agents never told him why he was arrested or allowed him a chance to contact a lawyer or his family during his three-day detention.
Retes said he joined the army at 18 and was deployed to Iraq in 2019.
“I joined the service to help better myself,” he said. “I did it because I love this (expletive) country. We are one nation and no matter what, we should be together. All this separation and stuff between everyone is just the way it shouldn’t be.”
Over 300 people were arrested during two immigration enforcement operations at farms in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced that federal agents arrested 319 people during the operations at Glass House Farms near Camarillo and Carpinteria.
“I was just given an update on Thursday’s operation at the marijuana facility in California. @DHSgov law enforcement rescued 14 children from potential forced labor, exploitation, and trafficking. They arrested 319 illegal aliens. They faced assaults, violence, and even bullets fired at them. Thank you to the brave men and women of @ICEgov and @CBP law enforcement. This is quickly becoming one of the largest operations since President Trump took office,” wrote Noem.
DHS said the law enforcement activity was part of an investigation into immigration and potential child labor violations.