The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner has not yet released Friday the identity of a man Monrovia officials say died fleeing from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid at a Monrovia Home Depot.
There have been community concerns and some outrage about the raid and the death, which happened Thursday when the victim was fatally struck by a Ford Expedition traveling eastbound as he ran onto the Foothill (210) Freeway, reportedly to escape federal agents.
According to a statement by Monrovia City Manager Dylan Feik, Monrovia police responded shortly before 10 a.m. to a call about an ICE action at The Home Depot at 1625 Mountain Ave. During that action, a man fled on foot across Evergreen Avenue and onto the 210 Freeway and was struck by a vehicle near Myrtle Avenue, according to Feik and the California Highway Patrol.
CHP officials said the man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
“There is no ongoing ICE activity reported in Monrovia at this time, and the city has not received any communication or information from ICE,” Feik said. “While we understand community members want to know more about the incident, the information provided in this update is all the city has to provide at this time.”
Protesters staged a rally on Thursday to express outrage over the death and to call for an end to the continued immigration enforcement raids taking place in and around Los Angeles.
On Thursday, state Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez, D-Pasadena, issued a statement decrying the raids and referenced the death, which was in her district.
“President Trump’s terror campaign has taken another life,” she said.
She added her condolences to the man’s family.
“There is such incredible fear in our immigrant communities, so much so that people will run into freeway traffic out of fear when all they want is a chance to support their family and seek the American Dream,”
Pérez has called for an end to what she described as violent and sweeping.
“The Trump Administration is violating a federal court order by continuing to conduct deadly roving immigration raids within the area of the U.S. District Court’s Central District of California that includes Los Angeles County,” she stated. “These raids have been ruled to be illegal racial profiling by a federal judge and the Trump Administration has been ordered to comply with a temporary restraining order.”
Pérez has been an advocate for comprehensive immigration law reform.
“How many more brown-skinned people have to die before the president will obey the law?” she asked. “There is a better way. Comprehensive immigration reform that both parties work on is the only solution. I renew my call to pursue this path and stop the terror.”
The CHP is continuing its investigation into the circumstances surrounding how and why the pedestrian was on the freeway, according to a CHP statement. Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact Officer J. Rosas, during business hours, at 626-517-8500.
Don’t come here illegally then none of this would have happened, and don’t evade law enforcement.