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Three federal air marshals were chased out of a Lynwood restaurant after a crowd mistook them for immigration agents on Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
The apparent case of mistaken identity occurred around 6:20 p.m. at Plaza Mexico, in the 3100 block of E. Imperial Hwy. The air marshals were having dinner at a Korean barbecue restaurant when someone recognized them as Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, according to deputies.
Deputies said a large crowd formed at Plaza Mexico after the rumor spread through the restaurant and social media. The Sheriff’s Department said the air marshals called for help, prompting dozens of deputies from two nearby stations to respond.
The deputies separated the air marshals from the crowd and created a skirmish line between the two groups in the parking lot. After a brief time, they walked the federal agents to the sidewalk, where an unmarked van picked them up.
With an escort from deputies, the van drove the air marshals to the Sheriff’s Department’s Century Station.
Deputies did not arrest anyone during the incident. The crowd dispersed soon after.
Federal air marshals fall under the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which is part of the Department of Homeland Security.
“Last night in Los Angeles County, TSA employees were accosted by a mob while dining at a restaurant in Lynwood, California,” TSA wrote in a statement. “The mob believed these TSA officials were ICE agents. They were not.”
Eric Kim, the owner of Ten-Raku All You Can Eat Korean BBQ, said protesters showed him photos of the people they believed to be ICE agents.
“It’s very hard to recognize that this is the same person,” Kim said.
In the wake of the ordeal, Kim said his restaurant has received bad reviews and calls for a boycott, even though his 40 employees are from the immigrant-rich community of Lynwood.
“I respect all my community and my customers,” he said. “Please don’t misunderstand what we are doing.”
LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said he understands the community’s fear and anxiety amid the ongoing immigration operations in Southern California and nationwide.
“What I’m urging the community to do is be very cautious about the way you’re reaching and the way you’re confronting folks because it may not be what you think it is.”
