Montebello man shouts "I am American" while immigration agents detain him
A face-to-face encounter with federal immigration agents has left Montebello man Brian Gavidia shaken and unable to sleep at night.
Gavida said he was working at a tow yard on W. Olympic Boulevard in Montebello when he heard immigration agents were outside. An agent approached him when he stepped outside. Gavida said he told the officers he was an American citizen three times before they tried to detain him.
"East Los Angeles born and raised, ma'am," he recalled telling an agent. "I am American. I stated I was American. He still attacked me. We are not safe, guys, not safe in America today."
Gavida said the agent asked him what city and hospital he was born in before throwing him into a gate and twisting his arm.
"I said, 'I don't know.' And because I didn't know, he threw me to the gate and he twisted my arm," Gavida said. "I said, 'Brother, I am American. You are twisting my arm.'"
During the encounter, he said his friend, who is also an American citizen, was rough-handled by federal agents.
"I see my friend state that he is an American," Gavidia said. "He gets slammed to the floor. He is bleeding from his forehead. I want to jump in and defend my friend. ICE agent looks at me with his AR-15. I can't win that battle."
Gavidia said the agent took both his phone and Real ID and only let him go because his friend started filming.
"I couldn't sleep last night," he said. "Let me tell you the truth: He took my ID, he took my phone. He never gave me back my ID. Is this guy going to come and pick me up at 2 or 3 a.m. I don't know."
Gavidia said he won't be silenced about what he calls blatant mistreatment.
"It doesn't make me happy to have my face out here like this," he said. "I don't want to be in this position. I don't want to have my face out here like this, but I have to. My people are getting attacked, and yeah I'm American, but I'm Latino as well."
U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not respond to CBS News Los Angeles' request for comment.
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