Federal agents raided a nightclub earlier on Friday and arrested 36 Chinese and Taiwanese citizens on suspicion of illegality in the country.
Los Angeles Homeland Security personnel, U.S. immigration and customs law enforcement officers, and members of El Camino’s Real Financial Crime Task Force were arrested during the “Action Enforcement Operation at the Underground Nightclub.”
A video shared by the Los Angeles HSE shows an officer wearing a vest in a parking lot before sunrise and then cutting down the daytime scene of a group of people huddled on the sidewalk outside the building, with some looking up. Officials were handcuffed and loaded them into white vans.
It is not yet known where the underground nightclub is located.
More details about the investigation have not been obtained immediately. The role of El Camino’s real financial crime task force in the raid is also not clear.
The group is a multi-agent initiative targeting federal and state investigators in financial crimes in Southern California. Members include HSI Los Angeles, IRS Criminal Investigation, Central California District Attorney’s Office and California Department of Justice.
An investigation involving the task force on Wednesday led to the arrest of 14 people, including residents of the San Fernando Valley and Glendale, who were charged as part of a transnational criminal network that fraudulently earned more than $25 million in revenue from the Covid-19-19 relief fund.
Friday's immigration enforcement action was due to the ICE's efforts to comply with President Trump's orders to increase the pace of arrests and deportations nationwide. The agency announced Thursday that it had the highest number of arrests in history this week.
Hsi Los Angeles arrested 12 Mexican citizens on Monday for allegedly appearing in the United States illegally after traveling from Mexico to a small boat on Long Beach.
In April, an estimated 20 day workers were detained in U.S. customs and border protection measures outside Home Depot in Pomona. Earlier this year, CBP agents conducted a three-day raid in rural Kern County targeting day workers and Latino farm workers.