Immigration activists whose homes were raided accuse federal agents of intimidation campaign

VC Defensa organizes ICE patrols, a hotline and community support for immigrants in Ventura county, California Federal agents have raided the homes of three southern California immigration activists in what the activists allege is the latest escalation in a Trump administration campaign to harass a volunteer-led advocacy group that organizes neighborhood ICE-watch patrols. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the main investigatory branch of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), executed a pre-dawn raid on 13 May at the home and business of Leonardo Martinez, whose group VC Defensa runs a rapid response hotline and supports immigrant families across Ventura county. The homes of two other current and former VC Defensa volunteers were also targeted. No arrests were made. Continue reading...

Jackie Botts in Oxnard, California · Wed, May 20, 2026, 4:00 AM
California | The Guardian

VC Defensa organizes ICE patrols, a hotline and community support for immigrants in Ventura county, California

Federal agents have raided the homes of three southern California immigration activists in what the activists allege is the latest escalation in a Trump administration campaign to harass a volunteer-led advocacy group that organizes neighborhood ICE-watch patrols.

Agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the main investigatory branch of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), executed a pre-dawn raid on 13 May at the home and business of Leonardo Martinez, whose group VC Defensa runs a rapid response hotline and supports immigrant families across Ventura county. The homes of two other current and former VC Defensa volunteers were also targeted. No arrests were made.

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