Oklahoma family traumatized after ICE raids home: ‘We’re citizens!’
Share this @internewscast.com

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) A woman says her family’s fresh start in Oklahoma turned into a nightmare after federal immigration agents raided their home, taking their phones, laptops and life savings even though they were not the suspects the agents were looking for.

The agents had a search warrant for the home, the woman said, but the suspects listed on the warrant do not live in the house.

The woman, whom affiliate KFOR will refer to as “Marisa,” had just moved to Oklahoma City from Maryland with her family about two weeks earlier. They rented a house in a seemingly safe Oklahoma City neighborhood, looking for a slower, more affordable pace of life.

“Marisa” told affiliate KFOR that she endured a terrifying ordeal Thursday when federal agents raided her home and seized her belongings, despite not being the suspect the agents were looking for. (KFOR)

“I was like, ‘OK, Oklahoma’s my home now,’” Marisa said.

But any sense of comfort they began to feel in Oklahoma City disappeared Thursday morning, when about 20 men, armed with guns, busted through the door.

“I don’t know who they were,” Marisa told KFOR through tears. “It was dark. All the lights were off.”

Marisa said the men identified themselves as federal agents with the U.S. Marshals, ICE and the FBI. On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service denied having agents present during the raid, telling KFOR they were “aware of the operation before it happened,” but did not assist in any capacity.

Agents allegedly order family into the rain before they could put clothes on

“I keep asking them, ‘Who are you? What are you doing here? What’s happening?’” she remembered. “And they said, ‘We have a warrant for the house, a search warrant.’”

The agents then ordered Marisa and her daughters outside into the rain before they could even put on clothes, Marisa said.

“They wanted me to change in front of all of them, in between all of them,” she said. “My husband has not even seen my daughter in her undergarments her own dad because it’s respectful. You have her out there, a minor, in her underwear.”

Agents were ‘very rough, very careless’: Mother

Marisa eventually learned the names on the search warrant did not belong to her or anyone in her family. Instead, she recognized them as names listed on mail still arriving at the house, likely former residents.

“We just moved here from Maryland,” she said. “We’re citizens. That’s what I kept saying. ‘We’re citizens.’”

She said the agents didn’t care.

“They were very dismissive, very rough, very careless,” Marisa said. “I kept pleading. I kept telling them we weren’t criminals. They were treating us like criminals. We were here by ourselves. We didn’t do anything.”

Marisa said the agents tore apart every square inch of the house and rifled through what few belongings they had, ultimately seizing their phones, laptops and their life savings in cash as “evidence.”

‘It was so denigrating’: Oklahoma City mother

“I told them before they left, I said, ‘You took my phone. We have no money. I just moved here,’” she said. “’I have to feed my children. I’m going to need gas money. I need to be able to get around.’ Like, how do you just leave me like this? Like an abandoned dog.”

Before they left, Marisa said one of the agents made a comment acknowledging that the ordeal must be “a little rough” for her.

“It was so denigrating,” Marisa said. “That you do all of this to a family, to women, your fellow citizens. And it was ‘a little rough?’ You literally traumatized me and my daughters for life. We’re going to have to go get help or get over this somehow.”

Now, Marisa said she and her family have, quite literally, nothing. Marisa’s husband wasn’t even around to help, seeing as he had stayed back in Maryland for a few extra weeks and had planned to join them this weekend.

“I said, ‘When are we going to get our stuff back?’ They said it could be days or it could be months,” Marisa said.

Marisa said she’s now left with nothing but questions.

“What if I would have been armed?” she said. “You’re breaking in. What am I supposed to think? My initial thought was we were being robbed that my daughters, being females, were being kidnapped. You have guns pointed in our faces. Can you just reprogram yourself and see us as humans, as women? A little bit of mercy. Care a little bit about your fellow human, about your fellow citizen, fellow resident. We bleed too. We work. We bleed just like anybody else bleeds. We’re scared. You could see our faces that we were terrified. What makes you so much more worthier of your peace? What makes you so much more worthier of protecting your children? What makes you so much more worthy of your citizenship? What makes you more worthy of safety? Of being given the right that they took from me to protect my daughters?”

FBI told affiliate it was not on scene

Marisa told KFOR the agents wouldn’t even leave her a business card, and gave her no instructions or contacts for reclaiming the items they confiscated.

Marisa told KFOR the U.S. Marshals Service and the FBI were involved in this raid. However, the U.S. Marshals Service has denied its involvement.

When reached for comment last week, a spokesperson for the FBI told KFOR it was assisting with the case and directed inquiries to Homeland Security. Late Tuesday, the FBI told KFOR it was not on the scene and again instructed KFOR to contact Homeland Security.

A spokesperson for Homeland Security said that they would look into the incident and get back, but have yet to follow up. As for Marisa’s phones, electronics and cash, they had no idea which agency was in possession of those belongings or how to get them back.

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

YWCA Sets Bold Plans to Boost Women’s Empowerment in the Coming Year

The YWCA in Bristol, Tennessee, recently held its Family Fun Night Celebration…

Governors Youngkin and Spanberger Clash Over Controversial UVA Presidential Appointment

Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger has requested that the University of Virginia’s Board of…

Johnson City Man Faces Charges Following Extensive SVU Investigation

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) — A local man from Johnson City has…

Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys Unite for Thrilling New Series ‘The Beast in Me

In the early days when television was gaining ground on films with…

U.S. Military Conducts 20th Operation Against Suspected Drug Trafficking Vessel in Caribbean, Resulting in Four Fatalities

In a significant escalation of its campaign against drug trafficking in South…

Tri-Cities Businesses and Credit Unions Adapt to Economic Shift as Penny Production Ceases

A significant chapter in American currency has concluded as the U.S. Mint…

FAA Initiates Flight Restoration Post-Shutdown, Navigates Ongoing Restrictions

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced on Friday that it will ease…

Devastating Fire Destroys Osceola County Home: Community Rallies in Aftermath

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – In the early hours of Friday, a fire…

Experts Raise Concerns Over Florida’s New Education Standards, Citing Echoes of Red Scare Tactics

ORLANDO, Fla. – The daughter of a Hollywood screenwriter, who faced imprisonment…

Join the Race: Register Now for Bristol’s YWCA Turkey Trot and Get Ready for a Fun-Filled Fitness Event!

The YWCA of Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia is once again gearing…

Overcoming Boundaries: A Mother’s Battle to Keep Her Son in the Right School District

ATLANTA – This summer was one of the most challenging in recent…

Opioid Settlement Proposal with Purdue and Sackler Family Faces Minimal Opposition

NEW YORK – In a pivotal moment for the ongoing legal battle…