'They're basically kidnapping people': Phoenix ICE arrests sow fear in immigrant community

As people seeking asylum arrived for their scheduled court hearings in Phoenix weeks prior, the last thing they would have expected was walking away in handcuffs as ICE agents hovered just outside the doors, waiting to apprehend them.

It had been heard of in other states. Headlines were made in major cities early on in President Donald Trump’s second term, where accounts of masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detaining undocumented immigrants quickly became viral.

Arizona, however, had yet to see this level of enforcement. That is, until mid-May, when masked ICE agents traveling in unmarked vehicles pulled up outside the Phoenix Immigration Court offices, arresting court-goers following the dismissal of their immigration cases.

Mothers with children were no exception. For two consecutive days during the week of May 19, ICE agents maintained a presence outside the building and were captured on camera arresting people as they left their hearings. 

The week after, they changed tactics as protests erupted and immigration advocates spoke out against the deportations in front of the Phoenix Immigration Court offices. The same masked individuals were seen near the courts, often following court attendees in their vehicles after they had left the building in downtown Phoenix.

This week, Phoenix activists were still seen in the area providing resources and information to individuals who had shown up for their scheduled hearings, due to the presence of ICE agents days prior.

Two weeks into the enforcement activities — an unprecedented move that is helping the current administration facilitate rapid deportations, a strategy spearheaded by U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) Kristi Noem — Arizona pro-immigrant rights organizations are calling for change, but, above all, urging immigrants and their families to become as informed as possible. 

ICE agents target court-goers in Phoenix

Lazaro Suarez Garcia, a Cuban man seeking asylum, was dropped off by a friend on Wednesday, May 21, in time for a 1 p.m. hearing that would determine if his asylum case was approved.

His friend, also a Cuban immigrant who did not want to release his name due to safety concerns, arrived at 3 p.m. to pick him up. He called and texted Suarez Garcia to no avail.

In speaking with CALÓ News, he shared that he had heard that ICE agents were arresting people as they walked out of court. Having not heard from his friend as of 4:20 p.m., a CALÓ reporter reached out to other journalists present during court proceedings who confirmed that Suarez Garcia’s case had been denied. When he walked out, he was seen on video being apprehended by agents.

“I am very worried. I'm afraid that they will deport him back to Cuba because… he will never be able to leave Cuba again,” his friend said.

It was unclear whether Suarez Garcia had been deported or if he remained in ICE custody. An ICE spokesperson told CALÓ News that this information could not be provided without an A# — which his friend did not provide — but said that all immigrants "in violation of U.S. immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and if found removable by final order, removed from the U.S., regardless of nationality."

The following day, only four people attended their hearings. 

The majority of the people at the hearings weren’t represented by lawyers and seemed unfamiliar with the arduous paperwork process. Some even appeared confused at what they were being told.

Judge Marni Guerrero addressed the courtroom and reminded those present that they were required to attend their court hearings or risk deportation and become ineligible to return to the U.S. for 10 years.

One of those was Karin Baena Borroso, who drove from Tampa, Florida, to attend her Phoenix hearing. Without a lawyer present, she represented herself. She visibly trembled and broke down into tears several times as she waited to go before the judge. 

Guerrero rescheduled Baena Borroso’s hearing to be in Florida, closer to where she was currently living. 

Baena Borroso asked a lawyer who was observing the hearings to escort her out of the building because she was terrified that ICE would be waiting for her outside the doors, just like they were the day before, but agents weren’t present that day.

Instead, she was met with immigration advocates and protesters who gathered outside, helping to educate people before they headed into their hearings. 

One of those advocates was Fernanda Ruiz, program manager at the Arizona Democracy Resource Center. Ruiz and other volunteers informed people with court hearings that they had the right to request more time to seek a lawyer and to appeal their cases.

“We just want to make sure that people are aware of … the atrocities that (ICE is) doing to these people because they are coming in here in good faith seeking safety,” Ruiz said.

Just a day earlier, Ruiz said she witnessed women and children being taken into ICE custody.

“It was very devastating. We were able to get to a lot of people and prepare (them) for what could happen. And, sadly, some of the ones that we had talked to before they went to the court, they did get taken,” Ruiz said. 

Legislators, advocates demand answers

Trump said he would focus on deporting immigrants with criminal records, but recent actions — including the detention of immigrants with authorized status — has shown that the Trump administration seemingly operates on a different agenda. 

Following the events in May, U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego, both Democrats, wrote a letter to ICE and DHS demanding answers on behalf of their constituents in Arizona. 

“Not only do these tactics make the immigration system less fair and efficient, but they also directly contradict the administration’s claims that it is targeting the worst criminals and genuine public safety threats,” the statement reads.

Puente Arizona, an immigrant rights organization based in Phoenix, started a Migra Watch to help report when immigration agents showed up. Their volunteers were among the first on the ground when ICE agents pulled up that first day in May. 

They use their Instagram and Facebook accounts to keep residents informed of any ICE activities.

Last week, immigration advocates and legislators continued to protest outside the immigration court offices. Ruiz said people in her group received calls about families being followed by ICE agents after leaving their appointments. 

One of the families was not detained, but were pulled over by agents in unmarked vehicles. 

From what Ruiz has witnessed, she believes ICE is now trying to detain people less publicly by waiting for them to leave court in their vehicles.

“They're basically kidnapping people. We're putting pressure on the agents who do this job. We're trying to be of support for the people and tell them that they have rights,” Ruiz said.