3 days ago
Residents voice outrage after ICE raid in North Buffalo
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A neighborhood in North Buffalo is voicing its outrage after it said armed ICE agents detained a number of roofers in broad daylight.
A homeowner on Crescent Avenue in the Parkside neighborhood recently posted on social media saying that on May 12, armed ICE agents stopped by her home and removed four roofers while they were on their lunch break. The homeowner, who for privacy reasons will remain anonymous, claimed these were legally employed roofers with the proper paperwork and documentation. The post has since gained a lot of attention on social media.
One resident took photos of the raid and the large police presence in her neighborhood. In an email to the Parkside Community Association, she wrote in part, 'Many of us neighbors were outside observing this, in shock.'
Local leaders say they understand why people in the neighborhood are upset.
Braden Pritchard is the president of the Parkside Community Association. He said for this to happen during the day, with schools nearby and in a quiet neighborhood, is alarming.
'We felt that was a totally inappropriate response to detain four unarmed roofers. To the best of our knowledge, there was no reason to suspect there was a threat,' he said.
The PCA released a statement when this happened, saying in part, 'This kind of operation traumatizes our community, creates fear among law-abiding residents, and undermines trust in public institutions. Parkside is a strong, inclusive neighborhood, and we believe it is unacceptable for our streets to be treated like a battleground.'
State Senator Sean Ryan told News 4 that neighbors have reached out to his office outraged and concerned. He said they described the scene last month as chaotic and confusing.
'There's a lot of questions about why would the FBI be involved in this. We don't know the details of the people who were detained, but generally the thought is the FBI should have a lot more important things going on in terms of enforcing major crimes in our community,' Ryan said.
News 4 has reached out to ICE officials for comment and we have yet to hear back.
Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work.
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