- In December 2025, social media users shared testimony from George Retes, who claimed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents violently detained him in Camarillo, California, despite his statements that he was a U.S. citizen and veteran. He further alleged that he was held for three days without charges, access to a lawyer, medical care or the ability to shower, according to the posts.
- The social media posts accurately reported Retes’ allegations from his testimony before members of Congress on Dec. 9, 2025. U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Ct., published a transcript of Retes’ full remarks on his website. The Institute for Justice — a nonprofit public interest law firm that said in August it was representing Retes as he took steps to sue the federal government over his detention — also posted video of his testimony.
- When Snopes first reported on this story, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) — the cabinet agency over ICE — acknowledged in a July 14 statement that Retes was arrested and later released from custody. In a Dec. 12 statement emailed to Snopes, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin provided additional information, stating that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) arrested him on suspicion of assault.
- Retes’ family members previously told KABC, a Los Angeles news station, that he is a disabled veteran and a U.S. citizen. The KABC report also included a photo of a man the station said was Retes wearing what appeared to be an Army uniform. United Farm Workers, a labor union, also referred to Retes as an American citizen and disabled Army veteran. Snopes was unable to independently confirm the information about Retes’ military service.
In December 2025, social media users (archived here and here) shared testimony from George Retes, who said federal immigration authorities detained him for three days without charges. The posts identified Retes as both a U.S. citizen and a Army veteran.
According to the posts, Retes alleged that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detained him while he was driving to work as a security guard at a farm in Camarillo, California. He said he identified himself as a U.S. citizen and veteran, but agents ignored his statements, smashed his car window, deployed tear gas and pepper spray, and forcibly dragged him out of the car.
Retes further claimed that agents kneeled on his back and neck while he was restrained, collected his DNA, and then held him for three days without charges, access to a lawyer, medical care or the ability to shower, according to the posts.
(Occupy Democrats on Facebook)
Multiple Snopes readers searched our website to verify the details of Retes’ testimony.
The social media posts in question accurately reported Retes’ allegations from his testimony before members of Congress on Dec. 9, 2025. U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Ct., published a transcript of Retes’ full remarks (archived) on his website. The Institute for Justice — a nonprofit public interest law firm that said in August it was representing Retes as he prepared to sue the federal government over his detention — also posted video of his testimony (archived).
When Snopes first reported on this story, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) — the cabinet agency over ICE — acknowledged in a July 14 statement that Retes was arrested and later released from custody.
In a Dec. 12 statement emailed to Snopes, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin provided additional information, stating that Retes, whom she acknowledged is a U.S. citizen, “became violent and refused to comply with law enforcement.” She further claimed he “blocked their route and refused to move his vehicle out of the road,” adding that CBP arrested him on suspicion of assault.
McLaughlin did not respond to further questions about Retes’ detention or the conditions he described. ICE had not responded to a request for comment at the time of this writing.
Retes’ family members previously told KABC, a Los Angeles news station, that he is a disabled veteran and a U.S. citizen. The KABC report also included a photo of a man the station said was Retes wearing what appeared to be an Army uniform.
United Farm Workers, a labor union, also referred to Retes in July 2025 as “an American citizen” and “disabled U.S. Army veteran.”
Snopes was unable to independently confirm the information about Retes’ military service.
Below is a breakdown of what we know about Retes’ detainment and the immigration raid at the Camarillo farm:
UFW, DHS address Retes’ detainment
On July 13, 2025, UFW wrote about Retes’ detainment in a thread on X (archived):
George Retes, an American citizen disabled US Army veteran who has been held in federal custody since Thursday, was released without charges this evening.
Mr. Retes was wrongfully arrested while driving near the chaotic and deadly raid targeting farm workers near Camarillo, CA on July 10. His wife was unable to contact him and located his abandoned vehicle with the windows smashed and a smell of chemical agent inside.
He and his family are grateful for the widespread support but have asked for privacy. They do not wish to speak with press at this time.
George Retes, an American citizen disabled US Army veteran who has been held in federal custody since Thursday, was released without charges this evening. 1/ pic.twitter.com/8PvZNGau3H
— United Farm Workers (@UFWupdates) July 14, 2025
DHS initially confirmed Retes’ arrest in an email to Snopes on July 14, 2025, adding that he was released from custody and “has not been charged.” Tricia McLaughlin, the agency’s assistant secretary for public affairs, wrote:
George Retes was arrested and has been released. He has not been charged. The US Attorney’s Office is reviewing his case, along with dozens of others, for potential federal charges related to the execution of the federal search warrant in Camarillo.
McLaughlin provided additional information in a Dec. 12 statement emailed to Snopes:
As U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and ICE agents were executing criminal search warrants on July 10 at the marijuana sites in Camarillo, CA, George Retes—a U.S. citizen—became violent and refused to comply with law enforcement. He blocked their route and refused to move his vehicle out of the road. CBP arrested Retes for assault.
Snopes also reached out to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office for additional information about Retes’ detainment. A spokesperson for the agency said authorities were not “provided the identities of any individuals who were detained by federal authorities during their operation.” The spokesperson added, “Any individuals taken into federal custody would have been taken to a federal detention facility.”
What we know about Camarillo immigration raid
DHS said in a statement that “federal law enforcement officers executed criminal warrant operations at marijuana grow sites in Carpinteria and Camarillo” on July 10, 2025.
Federal officers arrested at least 361 people suspected of being in the U.S. illegally, DHS said in the statement released on July 13. The agency added that “at least 14 migrant children have been rescued from potential exploitation, forced labor and human trafficking.”
According to reports from NBC News and the BBC, federal agents and protesters clashed at the Camarillo site. Federal agents used tear gas and less-lethal weapons against protesters while employees in the grow house were “being rounded up and arrested,” NBC News reported.
In its July 13 statement, DHS said “four U.S. citizens are being criminally prosecuted for assaulting or resisting officers.” People whom the department described as “rioters” allegedly damaged vehicles, and one person reportedly fired a gun at law-enforcement officers, the federal agency added.
Farm workers were “critically injured” during the raids, according to a UFW statement on July 11, and news media outlets reported that one worker later died. The union also said some U.S. citizens remained “totally unaccounted for” following the raids.
The full UFW statement is as follows:
The UFW can confirm farm workers were critically injured yesterday during chaotic raids in Ventura County, California. Others, including US citizens remain totally unaccounted for.
Our staff is on the ground supporting families. Many workers, including U.S. citizens, were held by federal authorities at the farm for 8 hours or more. U.S. citizen workers report only being released after they were forced to delete photos and videos of the raid from their phones.
The UFW is also aware of reports of child labor on site. The UFW demands the immediate facilitation of independent legal representation for the minor workers, to protect them from further harm. Farm workers are excluded from basic child labor laws and it is unfortunately not uncommon for teenagers to work in the fields. To be clear: detaining and deporting children is not a solution for child labor.
These violent and cruel federal actions terrorize American communities, disrupt the American food supply chain, threaten lives and separate families.
There is no city, state or federal district where it is legal to terrorize and detain people for being brown and working in agriculture. These raids must stop immediately
Glass House Brands acknowledged in an X post that ICE officials visited its farms on July 10, adding that “the company fully complied with agent search warrants and will provide further updates if necessary.”
In a follow-up post on July 11, Glass House Brands said it “received immigrant and naturalization warrants.” The company “verified that the warrants were valid” and complied with them, the post said.
The company added that it was assisting in providing legal representation to detained workers and denied reports that it employed minors.
Yesterday, Glass House Brands received immigration and naturalization warrants. As per the law, we verified that the warrants were valid and we complied.
Workers were detained and we are assisting to provide them legal representation.
Glass House has never knowingly violated…
— Glass House Brands Inc. (@GlassHouseBR) July 11, 2025
Retes’ full testimony
Below is a transcript of Retes’ full Dec. 9 testimony on his detention:
My name is George Retes. I’m here today not to reopen old wounds, but as a veteran, a father, and an ordinary person who still believes in the promise of this country and the values represented by our flag. I respect law enforcement. I respect the men and women who serve. But I also believe that accountability is not the enemy of respect—it is its foundation.
On July 10, 2025, I was confronted by ICE agents on my way to work. I want you to understand exactly what that looked like, not because I want sympathy, but because it exposes a crack in the law that must be fixed.
I was driving to my job as a security guard at a licensed farm in Camarillo, California. Federal immigration agents were lined across the road leading to the farm. I identified myself as a U.S. citizen and a veteran, but that didn’t matter. Agents smashed my window, sprayed tear gas and pepper spray into my car, and dragged me out. I was choking on gas, unable to breathe, while officers shouted conflicting commands. Even after I complied, they pinned me down — one kneeling on my back and another kneeling on my neck, while my hands were already behind me.
I was first taken to a Navy base, where agents collected my DNA. After that, I was taken to a detention center and held for three days without charges. No phone call. No lawyer. No medical care, even though my skin burned from the chemicals. I wasn’t allowed to shower.
On Friday morning, they placed me on suicide watch. Suicide watch is a yellow concrete room with a concrete bed and a thin mattress. The lights stay on 24/7. You’re stripped naked and put in a hospital gown. A guard watches you constantly. I remained in those conditions from Friday morning until the moment I was released. My family had no idea where I was. I was released without explanation and without a single charge.
That entire experience violated the very principles I fought to defend. And here’s the truth: it happened because of a gap in the law that allowed it. If these had been state or local officers, I could take them to court right now and demand answers. But because they were federal agents, they are shielded by a blanket immunity.
That’s why I’m here. The point is not to look backward, but forward. What can we do together to ensure this never happens again? This is not about politics. It is about principle. It is about fixing a flaw that undermines the freedoms we claim to protect.
I still believe in the flag. I still believe in the ideals that make this country worth fighting for. But belief alone is not enough. We need action. We need accountability. And we need laws that reflect the values we say we stand for.
Thank you for allowing me to speak. I hope my experience serves as a call to strengthen, not weaken, the trust between citizens and the institutions sworn to protect them.
Retes’ family members speak about his detainment
Retes’ sister and wife spoke to Josh Haskell, a reporter for KABC in Los Angeles, in July about his detainment in Camarillo. They told Haskell that Retes, who works as a security guard at Glass House Farms, is a disabled veteran and U.S. citizen.
“ICE thought he was probably part of the protest, but he wasn’t. He was trying to reverse his car,” said Retes’ sister, Destinee Majana. “They broke his window, they pepper-sprayed him, they grabbed him, threw him on the floor. They detained him.”
Majana and Retes’ wife, Guadalupe Torres, said they were calling people to find out where Retes was taken, but nobody could tell them where he was.
“We don’t know what to do. We’re just asking to let my brother go. He’s a U.S. citizen. He didn’t do anything wrong. He’s a veteran, disabled citizen. It says it on his car,” Majana added.
Haskell’s report for KABC also included a photo of a man the station said was Retes wearing what appeared to be an Army uniform.
When contacted by Snopes, Haskell did not provide documentation verifying Retes’ citizenship and military service
Torres also spoke to NBC News about Retes’ detainment. She said her husband complied with federal officers while checking on friends and colleagues who may have been affected by the raids, according to the NBC report. Instead, Retes was “arrested on suspicion of assault,” NBC reported, citing immigration officials.
