Hollywood Home Depot raided by federal agents; vendors and day laborers taken

Empty food stands lined a street outside of a Hollywood Home Depot on Thursday morning, June 19, after federal immigration agents detained at least 15 people, activists said.

At around 7:20 a.m., Edwin Guevara, a general contractor, received a call that federal immigration officials were raiding the store, and that one of his workers was stuck in the parking lot, so he drove over.

“They came out here, attacked our communities with our people vending,” Guevara said. “To see them run and escape for their lives really hurts me because day laborers built this community. … We built LA.”

Federal officials rarely provide details of their raids.

This comes almost two weeks after large-scale immigration raids began across Los Angeles.

A local resident who would only say her name is Silvia was walking around The Home Depot before the raid began and was hoping to passing out “know-your-rights” red cards when she heard vendors screaming, “There’s people running!”

She said she then saw two Border Patrol agents run into traffic on Sunset Blvd running after people. She walked back to The Home Depot and saw agents apprehending people.

Broken glass was next to a truck missing a window. A Home Depot employee said that was done by immigration officials.

At around 9 a.m., volunteers and vendors began packing up the food stands belonging to the vendors who were taken.

One street vendor, who did not want to be named, broke down in tears as she packed up her food station where she sold tamales, sweet bread, and juice.