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The truth about ICE: Inside the mission to track down criminals and protect communities
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EXCLUSIVE— U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents say misinformation and misleading videos are putting them at risk, fueling public hostility and attacks on officers. Fox News Digital embedded with ICE teams in Dallas and Houston in September to see their work firsthand and separate fact from fiction about their mission.
Acting Assistant Field Office Director in the Houston field office, Tom Persad, told Fox News Digital during the ride-along that it is a “privilege to live in America.”
“I don’t think anyone wants to have criminals living in their community breaking in and robbing them, stealing from them, raping them, child predators, gangbangers. And if these people commit their crimes, they should go back to their home country. It’s a privilege to live here,” Persad said.
A Dallas assistant office field director, who Fox News Digital joined for the ride-along, emphasized that ICE has targeted individuals when conducting arrests.
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“We want to keep our community safe,” he continued. “Stop believing what people are posting as far as like ICE is out there conducting raids, ICE is just arresting anyone they see, or they’re profiling.”
Persad in Houston emphasized that the theory that ICE is conducting raids against one particular demographic is not true.
“It’s just not one specific community. It just depends on their – the criminality,” Persad said.
Fox News Digital rode along with the Houston team on Sept. 12. Persad said many protesters and critics of ICE do not understand how the agency operates and criticized media outlets for misrepresenting ICE’s work.
“I’m not going to say all media, but the majority of them don’t put out the whole story. They just put out part of it. So then the general public or even the communities, they just, they’re not… informed fully, so then they just make a rash decision, or a rash conclusion about what we’re doing,” Persad said.
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He said this misinformation has real-world consequences.
“I feel if the media would actually tell the whole story, it would make everyone’s lives a lot easier doing this job, and also you don’t have these people resisting and running and fleeing and fighting and assaulting officers. Assaults have gone up dramatically in the last six to seven months.”
“Folks need to be better educated on as far as like our agency and what we do,” the Dallas officer emphasized.
During the Houston ride-along, agents arrested a Syrian citizen, a convicted child predator who was found to possess child sexual abuse materials in Harris County, Texas, and was admitted to the U.S. as a non-immigrant visitor but failed to return to his home country by the required date.
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Persad said following the arrest, “It’s not just the Hispanic community that we look at. We look at everybody. And it just depends on, the case today might come up with someone from Mexico. Tomorrow it might be someone from England, or Canada, or South America, or even Africa. We just don’t target one specific community.”
During the Dallas ride-along, agents arrested an illegal immigrant from Mexico with a long rap sheet of alleged crimes from his home country.
The individual ICE targeted that morning from Mexico had committed fraud while applying for status in the U.S., and had also faced allegations ranging from murder to money laundering that he hadn’t disclosed, according to the Dallas agent.
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Agents also stressed the importance of respect and safety during operations.
“Communication is key. And I think for individuals that we encounter on a daily basis, if we stay professional, and we treat them with respect, we expect the same back, right? And for the most part, that’s what we get,” the Dallas agent said.
He continued, “Safety is going to be the number one concern, but also it’s not just our safety, it’s their safety as well. So it’s very important, I think, to have that professional communication and treating everyone the way they should be, right? We’re all human beings.”
The Dallas ride-along took place on Sept. 23. Just one day later, a gunman opened fire at the ICE field office in Dallas, authorities confirmed.
ICE officers are facing a surge in death threats and violent attacks as they carry out the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
Statistics released by the Department of Homeland Security last month show that ICE officers are experiencing an 8,000% increase in death threats targeting ICE officers.
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Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the threats come as officers “risk their lives every single day to remove the worst of the worst.”
“From bounties placed on their heads for their murders, threats to their families, stalking, and doxxing online, our officers are experiencing an unprecedented level of violence,” she said.
Fox News’ Alba Cuebas-Fantauzzi and Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this report.
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Loved ones are devastated after a 37-year-old man was attacked by a dog and stabbed to death by several men on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The unprovoked attack happened on May 20 as Berry Henderson, 37, was standing at a bus stop near Hollywood Boulevard and Las Palmas Avenue around 3 p.m.
Surveillance video showed Henderson running into the street as a dog was seen chasing him and aggressively biting him.
Henderson managed to pull out a knife and stabbed the dog to defend himself. That’s when a group of four men, one of whom was the dog’s owner, rushed over to attack Henderson. A suspect who was armed with a machete was seen stabbing and punching Henderson.
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A group of four men stabbed and punched Barry Henderson after he stabbed the attacking dog in defense on May 20, 2026. (Henderson Family) -
Berry Henderson, 37, tried to escape the area from his attackers who quickly cornered him again on May 20, 2026. (Henderson Family) -
Loved ones held a candelight vigil at the crime scene on the Hollywood Walk Fame to honor Berry Henderson on May 29, 2026. (KTLA) -
Berry Henderson, 37, is seen in a family photo. -
Berry Henderson, 37, is seen in a family photo. -
The victim’s cousin, Demeya Brewer, speaks with KTLA at a candlelight vigil in Hollywood on May 29, 2026. (KTLA) -
Surveillance video showed Berry Henderson, 37, running into the street as a violent dog was seen chasing him and aggressively biting him near Hollywood Boulevard and Las Palmas Avenue in Hollywood on May 20, 2026. (Henderson Family)
The victim’s cousin, Sharon Grimes, said she was stunned that no bystanders acted to help Henderson.
“People around weren’t doing anything,” she said. “I didn’t see anybody try to come to his rescue, with all that blood. Nobody picked up the phone.”
“That’s what makes it so shocking,” said Najee Ali, a community activist. “That someone could actually be stabbed to death, beaten and bit by a dog in broad daylight with no one helping.”
Henderson, who was critically injured, stumbled across the street while trying to escape the attackers, but the men quickly came after him again.
“He was running away,” said Demeya Brewer, the victim’s cousin. “He was down on the ground, running away and they still continued to attack him.”
Henderson, who had suffered multiple stab wounds, died from his injuries at the hospital.
Los Angeles Police Department officers responded to the scene and were able to locate and arrest three suspects. The fourth male suspect managed to escape.
On Friday night, Henderson’s family gathered at the scene for a candlelight vigil to honor Henderson, who was a student at a local trade school. Family members said he was a peaceful man who was loved by his friends and community.
“My cousin was not a threat to anyone,” Brewer said. “This was his area, his neighborhood. Business owners knew him. We need more love and peace.”
Henderson’s family believes there are witnesses who likely know where the fourth suspect is hiding. They’re asking anyone with information on the case to call the LAPD at 213-382-9470.
A man suspected of repeatedly shooting at other vehicles while driving on the 405 Freeway in Los Angeles County was arrested on May 29, according to the California Highway Patrol.
CHP pulled over the suspected shooter, Martin Moreno-Pacheco, in South Los Angeles at about 3:40 a.m. Friday. Prior to his arrest, CHP officers suspected that Moreno-Pacheco was connected to multiple freeway shootings in recent days.
On May 26, a driver reported a car-to-car shooting, which they said happened on the 405 Freeway near Wilmington Avenue on May 23. The victim told investigators that the person responsible for the shooting was driving a black pickup truck.
“The victim reported an unprovoked shooting occurred, resulting in damage to the victim’s vehicle,” CHP said.
On May 28, at about 5:30 a.m., another car-to-car shooting was reported on the 405 Freeway south of Vermont Avenue. The victim told investigators that their car was damaged in a shooting committed by someone in a black pickup.
“Based on the investigation conducted, both incidents, as well as a third incident, which occurred on May 22, 2026, were determined to be committed by the same individual,” CHP said.
Moreno-Pacheco was found and arrested a week later. Upon searching Moreno-Pacheco’s truck, CHP officers found a loaded BB gun inside the truck’s passenger compartment.
No one was injured in the shootings, CHP said. CHP is asking any additional witnesses or victims of the alleged crimes to contact Officer C. Ortega at the CHP South Los Angeles Area office at (424) 551-4000.
Three rescued California sea lion pups were released back into the Pacific Ocean in Manhattan Beach Friday morning after weeks of rehabilitation for malnutrition, dehydration and other health issues. The public release event took place on the north side of the Manhattan Beach Pier and was hosted by the Marine Mammal Care Center, Los Angeles […]
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