Fed Agents Now Retreat After Confrontation During Immigration Operation

In a dramatic clash highlighting tensions over immigration enforcement, federal agents in Rochester, New York, were compelled to abandon a removal operation after confronting over 100 protesters who vandalized a government vehicle.

The incident unfolded on September 9, 2025, in the city’s upscale Park Avenue neighborhood, a recently codified sanctuary city, amid the Trump administration’s intensified crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

Federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) arrived at a residential job site on Westminster Road to execute a removal operation targeting suspected undocumented roofers.

One worker, identified as “Chino,” was detained—he has resided in the U.S. for 25 years, holds work authorization, attends church regularly, pays taxes, and is expecting a child with no known criminal record, including not even a speeding ticket.

Other workers refused to descend from the rooftop, creating a standoff that lasted approximately four hours.

Chino’s employer, local roofing contractor Clayton Baker, expressed outrage over the arrest.

“He’s never even had a speeding ticket. He goes to church every Sunday, he pays his taxes.

But you want to come get him off a hard-working job?

It’s inhumane and it’s sad,” Baker told reporters.

Baker vowed to support Chino’s family financially, underscoring the personal impact of the raid.

Protester Surge: Chants, Vandalism, and Forced Retreat

The situation escalated rapidly as word spread, drawing a crowd of 100 to 200 protesters, including local residents, immigrant advocates, clergy, and city leaders.

Demonstrators chanted “shame” and labeled the agents “Gestapo,” reflecting deep community opposition to the operation.

In a bold act of defiance, someone in the crowd slashed all four tires of a Border Patrol SUV, forcing the vehicle to be driven away on flats amid cheers and jeers from the protesters.

The SUV was later towed a few blocks away.

Protester Ruth Reeves captured the sentiment of many: “They’re here putting on a roof, trying to make a dollar and paying taxes on that dollar, and ICE was here bothering them, so I came to bother ICE.”

She added, “City by city, state by state, we have to stand up and we have to fight, and we have to tell them we’re not standing for this anymore.”

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow with the American Immigration Council, noted on X that slashing tires on a federal vehicle constitutes a severe crime, highlighting the intensity of the resistance in this affluent neighborhood.

The Rochester Police Department was not involved, leaving the tire vandalism investigation to federal authorities.

Mediation and Community Response: Advocates Step In

The Western New York Coalition of Farmworker Serving Agencies played a key role in mediating the standoff.

Executive Director Irene Sanchez stated in a news release: “The coalition is committed to standing alongside farmworkers, immigrants, and migrants to ensure dignity, fairness, and access to justice.”

Local lawmakers, including Assemblymember Harry Bronson, criticized the raid as divisive: “This is pitting one group of people against another group of people.

This is an attempt to attack our democracy, because a democracy can only operate under the rule of law.”

Assemblymember Jen Lunsford, who arrived as an attorney for the New York Immigration Coalition, emphasized legal oversight: “I showed up today… out of concern that there needed to be official warrants.

This is a private residence, so we just wanted to make sure that everything is happening within the bounds of the law.”

She praised the agents for being in uniform, contrasting it with reports of plainclothes operations elsewhere, but warned of eroding rule of law.

Sanctuary Policies and National Enforcement Surge

Rochester’s City Council unanimously voted late last month to strengthen its sanctuary city policy, which limits local cooperation with federal immigration authorities—a status the city is currently defending against a federal lawsuit.

This incident occurs against the backdrop of the Trump administration’s escalated immigration operations nationwide, including deploying National Guard troops to cities like Los Angeles and raids on sites like a New York candy factory where 57 undocumented immigrants were arrested.

White House border czar Tom Homan defended the approach: “President Trump’s been clear we’re going to prioritize public safety threats and national security threats, and data shows that’s exactly what we’re doing.

But if you want me to sit here and bless someone being here illegally, I’m not going to do that because they cheated the system.”

Critics, including New York Governor Kathy Hochul, have labeled such actions “cruel.”

CBP and ICE did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the incident.

As of now, it remains unclear if Chino faces charges or deportation proceedings, or if any protesters will be prosecuted for the vandalism.

This event underscores the growing divide over immigration policy, with local communities increasingly mobilizing against federal enforcement in sanctuary jurisdictions.

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