“When footage of a man being hit by federal immigration officers’ SUV in Northern California became public, the Department of Homeland Security responded by saying the man had jumped on the vehicle’s hood. Local police raised doubts about federal officials’ account as they announced a criminal investigation into Tuesday morning’s incident involving the pedestrian, 37-year-old”, — write on: www.cnn.com
When footage of a man being hit by federal immigration officers’ SUV in Northern California became public, the Department of Homeland Security responded by saying the man had jumped on the vehicle’s hood.
Local police raised doubts about federal officials’ account as they announced a criminal investigation into Tuesday morning’s incident involving the pedestrian, 37-year-old Antonio Moreida, citing video footage that contradicted DHS’ statement.
Footage from a nearby surveillance camera, a bystander’s cellphone recording and Moreida’s GoPro, which had already been made public at the time of the agency’s statement, told a different story of what happened on a residential street in Woodland, an agricultural city just outside of Sacramento. The incident is the latest in which DHS’ account has been contradicted by officials and video evidence amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
In a statement Wednesday morning, DHS said Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers didn’t hit a pedestrian.
“An agitator jumped onto the hood of an ICE vehicle and the officer driving applied the brakes,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement in response to CNN’s request for information. “The agitator slid off the hood. ICE immediately contacted EMS and the Woodland Police Department. Flopping for the camera is dangerous, especially when it interferes with a federal law enforcement operation,” apparently accusing the man of faking his injuries.
After the incident on Tuesday, Woodland Police Chief Ryan Kinnan said in a statement he found footage of the incident troubling. Investigators were working to gather evidence and statements and to review available audio and video related to the incident, including video taken from multiple perspectives, police said in a Facebook post. Woodland Police didn’t take part in the ICE operation the agents were involved in that morning, police said.
The following day, Woodland Police called DHS’ account “inconsistent.”
“Certain claims made in the DHS statement are inconsistent with the video evidence obtained and reviewed by Woodland Police investigators,” Kinnan said in an update Wednesday. The update said investigators had established, based on video evidence, the pedestrian had been hit by the vehicle driven by ICE agents and that he had not jumped onto the vehicle.
The local police department is conducting a criminal investigation into the events leading up to the collision and the actions of those involved, Kinnan said Wednesday.
By Thursday, in response to follow-up questions about the video footage, federal officials no longer said the person jumped on the hood.
“This individual chose to directly impede a law enforcement action and stand in the middle of an active road,” an ICE spokesperson said in a statement to CNN. “Our officers deliberately attempted to avoid making contact with this anti-ice protestor and drive around him, while also braking. We strongly urge individuals to not stand in the middle of active roadways while a law enforcement vehicle is approaching.”
Footage reviewed by CNN shows Moreida, a Woodland resident, in the middle of the street at around 9:40 a.m. Tuesday. Moreida said he had responded to a call that morning by NorCal Resist, a group which monitors immigration operations, about ICE activity in Woodland, he told CNN on Tuesday, hours after the incident.