Por Amairani Hernandez /Calo News
On Tuesday morning, Border Patrol was spotted in Bakersfield. Organizations like Loud for Tomorrow have posted on social media, highlighting that raids are currently underway in Kern County.
ICE representative Alethea Smock emailed CALÓ News on Wednesday to clarify that ICE was not part of the operation, but when asked why the Border Patrol was in Kern County, which is not close to the border, the response was that we would have to ask Border Patrol.
According the Homeland Security website: "ICE and CBP are both components of the Department of Homeland Security; CBP enforces customs and immigration law at and near the border and ICE enforces customs and immigration laws at the border as well as in the interior of the United States."
Many have spotted the border patrol cars in different parts of the city and are alerting that family and friends who are undocumented should stay home. Many people on social media are worried this is happening because of the new president.
The last time they were seen was at Home Depot with helicopters by Ming Street, where allegedly there was a raid and they took all the undocumented workers. CALÓ News went to check the area and there was not one worker on site.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection released a statement following the operations in Kern County.
The statement read: "The U.S. Border Patrol conducts targeted enforcement arrests of individuals involved in smuggling throughout our areas of operation as part of our efforts to dismantle transnational criminal organizations."
Updated Information
This story was updated on January 8, 2025 at 2 PM with additional information about the border patrol and ICE, which are both components of the Department of Homeland Security, but they are separate.
Correction
Jan. 8, 1:50 PM: This story has been updated to indicate that the agents seen in Kern County are from border patrol, not ICE, as previously reported.