Crowd Vandalizes Cudahy Police Cars Mistaken for ICE

Fontana police are searching for a group of people who damaged undercover officers' cars in Cudahy on Friday afternoon.

Officers conducting a narcotics investigation on Live Oak Street near Florence and Wilcox avenues noticed a large crowd forming around them. The Fontana Police Department said several people in the group believed the officers were federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents running an immigration enforcement operation.

Despite the officers' attempts to clarify that they were local narcotics investigators and not part of the U.S. government, the crowd grew larger and more disruptive. The department stated that the growing size of the group led the undercover team to request crowd control assistance from the sheriff's department. This move allowed the officers to safely continue their work.

As the situation escalated, members of the crowd damaged the officers' vehicles. Images from the scene show at least three cars with flattened tires. No officers were injured in the incident.

Police have opened a vandalism investigation and stated that criminal charges will be pursued against those responsible for the damage. The Fontana Police Department emphasized that the officers were conducting a criminal narcotics investigation and were not involved in any federal immigration enforcement operation.