A high school student who allegedly overstayed his visa was seized by masked immigration officers while walking his family dog in Los Angeles.
Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz, 18, was walking through his Van Nuys neighborhood last week when he was taken into custody.
The agents supposedly tied the dog to a tree and removed its collar, causing it to run free onto Sepulveda Boulevard, as per a GoFundMe campaign aimed at supporting the family’s legal expenses. What happened to the dog afterwards remains unknown.
The crowdfunder claims that during his arrest, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents made jokes about ‘getting to drink this weekend’ thanks to him.
Guerrero-Cruz’s family expresses their shock when the teen did not return home with their dog and faced initial difficulty in acquiring information regarding his whereabouts.
They later learned he was being held at a detention center in the LA area in what his family described as unhygienic conditions.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed Guerrero-Cruz, originally from Chile, is in their custody ‘pending removal’.
According to DHS, the teen ‘abused’ the visa waiver program through which he entered the country. Authorities assert Guerrero-Cruz was supposed to leave the US in March 2023 but ‘overstayed his visa by more than two years’.
Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz, 18, (pictured) was walking through his Van Nuys neighborhood on August 8 when he was seized by masked immigration officers
The Department of Homeland Security claims Guerrero-Cruz (pictured with his brother) ‘abused’ the visa waiver program under which he entered the country. Officials assert Guerrero-Cruz was required to depart the US in March 2023 but ‘overstayed his visa by more than two years’.
Guerrero-Cruz was detained on August 8, shortly after celebrating his 18th birthday. The teenager was slated to begin his senior year at Reseda Charter High School this month.
But instead of resuming school with his peers and soccer teammates, he is being held in ICE custody until he is deported.
His mother claims he is being kept in a ‘cramped holding cell’ with roughly 50 men who are much older than him, KTLA reports.
He allegedly does not have access to ‘basic hygiene, warmth, or adequate food’.
‘He has only water, and since being detained, he has not had proper access to a bathroom, there are just two toilets for everyone to share. He is cold, scared, and one of the youngest there,’ his loved ones allege.
Guerrero-Cruz helps care of his 5-month-old twin brothers and his 6-year-old brother, according to the GoFundMe.
Those who know him say he is a ‘devoted son, caring brother, loyal friend, and a valued member of our community’.
‘He is a good student, with a kind heart, who has always stepped up for his family,’ the campaign adds.
The family has secured legal counsel through the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, but Guerrero-Cruz’s loved ones are still urging others to ‘rally on his behalf’.
‘We call upon mothers and educators of conscience to join with us and call for Benjamin’s immediate release & declare that our kids belong in classrooms, not cages!’ a GoFundMe update posted Thursday reads.
A senior DHS spokesperson dismissed the family’s allegations, telling Daily Mail: ‘The allegations about CBP officers are FALSE, and it is lies like these that are contributing violence against our officers. Our officers acted professionally throughout the encounter.
‘Guerrero-Cruz tied the dog to a tree after his mother refused to come and retrieve it. Our officers acted professionally throughout the encounter. Under normal conditions, CBP would be able to call animal control and wait for them to help, however because of the increase in assaults, obstruction of operations, and rhetoric (like the lie told here about their conduct) in the LA area they are unable to do this.’
The spokesperson added: ‘Illegal aliens can take control of their departure with the CBP Home App. The United States is offering illegal aliens $1,000 and a free flight to self-deport now.
‘We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.’
Guerrero-Cruz helps care of his 5-month-old twin brothers and his 6-year-old brother
Los Angeles Unified School District Supt. Alberto Carvalho (pictured during a press conference Thursday) highlighted the poor conditions the teen is allegedly enduring in ICE custody
Los Angeles Unified School District Supt. Alberto Carvalho has been in contact with the teen’s mother, The Los Angeles Times reports.
Carvalho, during a Thursday press conference, also highlighted the poor conditions the teen is allegedly enduring.
‘He is 18 years old, but he’s a kid. He has not been exposed to anything in his life,’ the superintendent said. ‘He drinks water once a day. The food is insufficient. Mom said that there was not enough room for everybody to sit or lie down at the same time.’
Players on Guerrero-Cruz’s soccer team have also expressed their heartbreak by his sudden disappearance.
‘On the field, he was rock-solid—always showed up, worked hard, and could be counted on week after week,’ his friend Ronny said in a statement published on the GoFundMe campaign.
‘Off the field, he was just as reliable: kind, respectful, and someone who lifted up the people around him. He brought consistency, heart, and a quiet strength that made the team better in every way.’
A migrant was killed trying to flee ICE agents at the Home Depot in Monrovia, California (pictured) on Thursday. The incident marks the second ICE-related death in California
Outrage over Guerrero-Cruz’s detention comes as ICE faces intense scrutiny over its immigration crackdown.
A man fleeing from a raid at a Home Depot in Monrovia, a LA County city in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, was killed Thursday after he fled into a busy highway.
The unidentified migrant had jumped a concrete wall shortly after the agents arrived at the scene, fled on foot, entered the freeway and was struck by an oncoming vehicle.
Witnesses say he was still alive and ‘still moving’ shortly after being hit.
Disturbing footage shared online showed a man standing in the road hitchhiking as the migrant could be seen lying on the ground motionless.
He was then sent to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The incident marks the second ICE-related death in California.
