The LAPD’s first public presentation of its recent interactions with federal agents enforcing immigration law was interrupted Tuesday, when a deputy chief providing details of such incidents was apparently instructed to stop sharing specifics.
“They want us to hold off on some of this information,” Deputy Chief German A. Hurtado told the Board of Police Commissioners, after a uniformed officer whispered something to the LAPD’s constitutional policing director seated to his right, who in turn whispered to Hurtado mid-presentation.
“Roger that,” Hurtado was heard saying following the whispered instruction, and then cut-off his own description of a January 27, 2026 immigration incident he had been providing to the commissioners.
The LAPD did not immediately respond to a request for an explanation of what happened.
Earlier this month Mayor Karen Bass directed the LAPD to make public reports to the Police Commission on officers’ interactions with ICE and other federal agents enforcing immigration laws, in part to make sure officers were not assisting agents, which is forbidden by state law and local policies.
The LAPD has been collecting data on these interactions and other related calls but had not shared the data publicly until this week.
Prior to the whispered message at Tuesday’s meeting, Hurtado told the Commissioners the LAPD was aware of 8 immigration-related events in January and none in February.
Among the details Hurtado shared — one call on January 1 reported that federal agents were assaulting people in the LAPD’s Harbor area, then a second call from ICE reported a ‘hostile crowd’ at the same location, but officers found no one when they arrived.
A caller on January 12 reported a gardener had been dragged into a vehicle by 2 men. Hurtado said officers took a kidnapping report, but the report was deemed ‘unfounded’ when detectives confirmed the men were federal agents.
On January 17 callers reported ICE agents were using racial slurs, and a bystander was knocked down and injured when agents were chasing someone. No report was taken.
On January 27 a kidnapping was reported in the LAPD’s Northeast Division, when a man was taken by two other men wearing masks and wearing green and brown fatigues.
Hurtado said in all recent immigration incidents where LAPD officers were called, the officers were able to successfully identify or confirm the identities of the federal law enforcement agents involved.
He said Tuesday the Department planned to provide a monthly report on the number of incidents, then Commissioner Jeff Skobin urged more frequent updates, ‘in the spirit of transparency.’