More video has emerged of the violent detention of two men in Santa Ana Sunday by federal agents who used batons and pepper spray to force the men into compliance, according to witnesses, and the city’s mayor is among those criticizing their tactics.
The scene at the intersection of Warner Avenue and Main Street drew a crowd of onlookers, some of whom criticized the agents for their actions.
One witness said agents pepper sprayed a man who was not a threat to them.
“He was on the ground, face down. He has no way of defending himself, and he got pepper sprayed twice in the face,” she told KTLA’s Annie Rose Ramos. “I would see the gentleman trying to pull his hands out, but it wasn’t to resist them. It was to wipe his face. He was crying ‘help, help,’ screaming.”
At another point, at least one federal agent used a baton to strike a man multiple times.
That man ultimately needed stitches.
Mayor Valerie Amezcua said it appears the agents are “inexperienced, untrained” and are using “inhumane” methods to detain people.
“We’d like to say, ‘Stop and get out of our city.’ I’d love to do that, but we have no authority to do that,” she said. “This is a federal issue. President Trump has given this directive, and they are following his directive.”
Monday afternoon, federal officials issued a statement to KTLA regarding the incident.
In that statement, they identified one of those detained as “Apoloniol Arreola-Solario, a Mexican national illegally present in the United States.”
“Arreola fled on foot for roughly a quarter mile before agents were able to try to arrest him,” the statement said. “A violent mob then began pummeling law enforcement with rocks. One individual also assaulted agents in an attempt to prevent the arrest of Arreola while another started kicking the doors of the officer’s vehicle. All subjects were placed under arrest and transported to the Santa Ana Detention Facility.”
Josh DuBose contributed to this report.
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