U.S. Border Patrol Uses Rented Truck for Surprise Immigration Raid in Los Angeles

U.S. Border Patrol agents conducted a high-profile immigration raid on August 5 near a Los Angeles Home Depot store, using a rented box truck from Penske Truck Rental to surprise and arrest individuals in an operation dubbed “Operation Trojan Horse.” The agents, armed and in uniform, exited the truck’s rear doors during the early morning, startling workers and bystanders at the store’s parking lot, where many day laborers and street vendors had gathered [1].

The operation unfolded days after a federal appeals court upheld a judicial order that had temporarily blocked the Trump administration from conducting sweeping immigration arrests in Southern California. Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli defended the raid, stating on social media that “the enforcement of federal law is not negotiable and there are no sanctuaries from the reach of the federal government” [1]. The operation drew swift criticism from advocacy groups and labor organizations, who called it an overreach and a dangerous escalation in enforcement tactics.

Penske Truck Rental, whose vehicles have long been used for commercial transport and logistics, issued a statement clarifying that it had not authorized the use of its truck in the operation. “The company was not made aware that its trucks would be used in today’s operation and did not authorize this,” a spokesperson for Penske said. The company added that it would be contacting the Department of Homeland Security to ensure its vehicles are not used in a manner that violates its policies, which prohibit carrying people in the cargo areas of its trucks [1].

Union del Barrio, a community advocacy group, reported that members were present at the Home Depot when the truck arrived. Lupe Carrasco Cardona, an educator with the organization, described how the agents “hopped out and started indiscriminately just grabbing people,” including street vendors and day laborers. Unmarked white vans soon arrived with additional agents, further intensifying the scene [1].

The National Day Laborer Organizing Network condemned the operation, calling it a “dangerous escalation” in enforcement tactics. Pablo Alvarado, the group’s co-executive director, criticized the use of agents in “cowboy hats jumping out of a rented van with a TV crew in tow,” describing it as part of a broader assault on immigrant communities [1].

Since June, the Los Angeles region has been at the center of the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement efforts, which have led to the deployment of National Guard and Marine units and sparked widespread protests. Federal agents have carried out arrests at multiple locations, including retail stores, farms, and transportation hubs, sometimes detaining U.S. citizens by mistake [1].

A federal judge had previously issued a temporary injunction against indiscriminate arrests based on racial profiling, a practice the ACLU and other advocacy groups had challenged in court. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the order, but the administration continues to push back, arguing that such restrictions hinder its ability to enforce immigration law effectively [1].

Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, has maintained that enforcement operations are “highly targeted.” However, the Los Angeles raid and similar operations have raised questions about the scope and methods of immigration enforcement in the region [1].

Source: [1] Penske says it ‘did not authorize’ border patrol to use a rental truck to ambush immigrants at an LA Home Depot (https://fortune.com/2025/08/07/home-depot-immigration-raid-trojan-horse-penske-truck-rental/)