Citizen sues ICE over arrest during California cannabis farm raid [View all]

Source: Courthouse News Service

February 19, 2026


LOS ANGELES (CN) — A United States citizen and Iraq combat veteran sued U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal agencies claiming he was wrongfully arrested during an ICE raid of a licensed California cannabis farm, where he worked as a security guard, and detained for three days. George Retes Jr. said in his complaint filed Wednesday in Los Angeles federal court that he drove to his job at the farm near Camarillo on July 10, 2025, when he found the road blocked by U.S. agents.

“Instead of letting him pass, some officers ordered George to leave,” according to his lawsuit. “Others ordered him to get out of his car. George tried to comply with the conflicting commands. But the officers engulfed his vehicle in tear gas, pounded on his window until it shattered, sprayed George with pepper spray, dragged him from his car, and threw him to the ground.”

He was first detained at the farm for hours without being told what he was being accused of, Retes says. Next, he was taken to a nearby U.S. Navy base where he was fingerprinted, photographed and shackled, and where a DNA sample was taken of him, all without a warrant, probable cause or any legitimate explanation, he argues. He says that later that day, he was transferred to the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles. “There, he was strip searched, deprived of his belongings, and held incommunicado for three days and three nights,” he claims. “He was never brought before a judge and was never charged with any offense.”

The raid of the Camarillo farm was one of the well reported ICE operations in Southern California. About 319 people were detained and federal agents deployed numerous volleys of tear gas, rubber bullets and smoke bombs on family members of detained farm workers, concerned public officials, journalists and protesters.

Read more: https://courthousenews.com/citizen-sues-ice-over-arrest-during-california-cannabis-farm-raid/