NEED TO KNOW
- A Harbor Area Peace Patrol activist in Los Angeles reportedly spotted two masked immigration agents leaving an ICE staging area
- The two agents were seen wearing Chucky and Momo masks, according to NBC News
- In response to the reports, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said, “Happy Halloween!”
Federal agents were spotted wearing masks of horror film characters before executing an ICE raid in Los Angeles, NBC News and LA Taco report.
Two immigration agents were seen leaving an ICE staging area in unmarked cars on Tuesday, Oct. 28. Both were wearing horror masks: one of Chucky and the other of Momo, the outlets reported.
The person wearing the Momo mask was seen at an immigration raid on Oct. 28, a Harbor Area Peace Patrol activist told NBC News.
When asked by NBC News about the incident, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said, “Happy Halloween!” the outlet reported.
PEOPLE reached out to McLaughlin for comment.
A federal immigration agent standing outside their vehicle.
Carlin Steihl / Los Angeles Times via Getty
McLaughlin did not say whether ICE officers or Border Patrol agents were wearing the masks, according to NBC News.
The agency also took to X to share a clip of a Newsmax report announcing ICE’s arrest of five people on Halloween.
“Forget ghosts or ghouls—the true horror is the violent criminal illegal aliens, who sanctuary politicians protect, putting the safety of Americans at risk,” the Oct. 31 post reads. “Halloween is a little less scary this year with these monsters off American streets.”
The reports follow President Donald Trump’s threats to send a “surge” of immigration enforcement agents to San Francisco. Trump ultimately backed down on those threats after speaking with “friends of mine who live in the area” and Mayor Daniel Lurie.
“Friends of mine who live in the area called last night to ask me not to go forward with the surge in that the Mayor, Daniel Lurie, was making substantial progress,” he wrote in a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Oct. 23. “I spoke to Mayor Lurie last night and he asked, very nicely, that I give him a chance to see if he can turn it around.”
Earlier that week, Bay Area residents protested the ICE raids and violent arrests that have been executed in other cities like Chicago, Portland and Washington, D.C.
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As the raids in Chicago continue, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have condemned the federal intervention.
On Wednesday, Oct. 29, Pritzker asked DHS to pause immigration arrests until after Halloween. He noted that Border Patrol agents used tear gas on Saturday, Oct. 25, and there were children present who were on their way to a Halloween parade.
However, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem denied Pritzker’s request, and said in an Oct. 30 press conference that the agency was “absolutely not willing to put on pause any work that we will do to keep communities safe,” according to C-SPAN.
“The fact that Gov. Pritzker is asking for that is shameful and, I think, unfortunate that he doesn’t recognize how important the work is that we do to make sure we’re bringing criminals to justice and getting them off our streets,” Noem said. “Especially when we’re going to send all of our kiddos out on the streets and going to events and enjoying the holiday season.”
