While chaos erupted in the streets of Los Angeles—fires lit, roads blocked, ICE vehicles pummeled by bricks and bottles—federal agents on the ground stayed laser-focused on their mission. And despite the violent resistance they faced from mobs of anti-ICE demonstrators, they got the job done.
BREAKING: Federal sources ID some of the criminal illegal alien targets ICE arrested in their LA operation yesterday & today, which sparked violent protests. They include multiple gang members, convicted sex offenders, violent gun offenders, & drug offenders. One has already been… pic.twitter.com/WyZJ5JFLK4
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) June 8, 2025
According to reporting from Fox News national correspondent Bill Melugin, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement successfully arrested and began the deportation process for several high-profile, criminal aliens in Los Angeles over the weekend. These weren’t harmless border crossers or asylum-seekers. These were violent offenders—men with records that include rape, assault with deadly weapons, drug trafficking, and child endangerment.
Among those taken into custody:
- Rolando Veneracion-Enriquez, a Filipino national, with convictions in California for sexual penetration with a foreign object, assault with intent to commit rape, and burglary.
- Armando Ordaz, a Mexican national and documented gang member, with prior convictions for sexual battery, receiving stolen property, and theft in Los Angeles.
- Victor Mendoza-Aguilar, a Mexican national previously deported, with a rap sheet that includes assault with a deadly weapon and drug possession.
- Delfino Aguilar Martinez, also from Mexico, convicted of assault with a deadly weapon causing great bodily injury in L.A.
And there’s more:
- Jesus Alan Hernandez-Morales, a Mexican national, aggravated felon, and convicted human smuggler, was deported the same day as his arrest.
- Jose Gregorio Medranda Ortiz, from Ecuador, convicted of conspiring to traffic 5 kilos of cocaine via vessel in Florida.
- Lionel Sanchez-Laguna, a Mexican national with a violent history in Orange County: firing into an occupied dwelling, battery on a spouse, child cruelty, DUI, and assault with a firearm. He’s had a standing deportation order since 2020.
All of this played out while protesters—some flying foreign flags, others shouting anti-American slogans—raged in the streets, attacked federal agents, and demanded ICE operations stop immediately. Yet, against the backdrop of what some called a “violent insurrection against immigration enforcement,” ICE agents pressed forward, mission unshaken.
The violent mob assaults on ICE and Federal Law Enforcement are designed to prevent the removal of Criminal Illegal Aliens from our soil; a dangerous invasion facilitated by criminal cartels (aka Foreign Terrorist Organizations) and a huge NATIONAL SECURITY RISK.
Under President…
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) June 8, 2025
President Trump’s response was immediate. He activated the National Guard, with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth coordinating efforts to restore order and protect federal personnel. Meanwhile, U.S. Marines at Camp Pendleton were placed on standby, ready to deploy if needed to reinforce the operation.