DHS lied about wrongfully arrested veteran

[struggle4progress]

The Bulwark
Oct 10, 2025

Tim Miller is joined by George Retes, a U.S. Army veteran and American citizen who was wrongfully arrested and brutalized by ICE while simply trying to get to work. George shares his harrowing story of being surrounded by agents, pepper-sprayed, dragged from his car, locked in a detention center, and even placed on suicide watch—missing his young daughter’s birthday in the process.

[struggle4progress]

1. 'Every Time They're Caught Doing Something Bad, They Don't Own It'

Retes wrote an op-ed on Tuesday saying that he was abused despite repeatedly identifying himself as an American citizen, claims that DHS labeled the claims as "smears"

Pedro Camacho
Published Sep 18 2025, 10:57 AM EDT

A U.S. citizen and military veteran who claims he was wrongfully detained during a federal immigration raid in California has drawn a sharp response from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) — and from his lawyer, who accused the agency of refusing to take responsibility for its actions.

George Retes, 25, was arrested in July during a raid on a cannabis farm in Ventura County, California. In an op-ed published by the San Francisco Chronicle on Tuesday, Retes wrote that he was pepper-sprayed, zip-tied, and jailed for three days despite repeatedly identifying himself as an American citizen and Army veteran. He also said agents ignored his identification, used force against him, and left him unable to contact a lawyer.

DHS disputed his account in a statement on its official X account Wednesday. "We do our due diligence. We know who we are targeting ahead of time," the post read. The agency said Retes "became violent and refused to comply with law enforcement" by blocking the road with his vehicle and was arrested for assault. DHS added that "U.S. citizens are NOT 'wrongfully' being arrested by ICE" and accused critics of spreading "smears" that have fueled "a more than 1000% increase in the assaults on enforcement officers" ...

https://www.latintimes.com/lawyer-slams-dhs-defending-arrest-us-citizen-every-time-theyre-caught-doing-something-bad-589696

A textbook "Kavanaugh stop" !