Police debunk viral Facebook post claiming ICE detained and abused local man
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POCATELLO — A Facebook post alleging a local man was detained, held against his will, and physically injured by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent has been debunked by local law enforcement officials.
While EastIdahoNews.com has been unable to verify its origin, the post reads:
My fiance is a Calfornian-born, Native American-Hispanic American and a Navy veteran serving before and after 9/11. He was detained for over 4 hours this week by ICE in Pocatello, Idaho. This resulted in a reinjured detached retina and him suffering from multiple seizures while held against his will. He was held down knee to neck, was thrown to the ground, cuffed, threatened, he was ridiculed and screamed at to “speak in his native language.” Even after sending his birth certificate and SS card to our lawyers (who we were lucky to have there with him), he was traumatized for hours. If you think what is happening is small and inconsequential, it is not. He is a U.S. citizen, so imagine the treatment of the refugees and immigrants of this country. These are our neighbors and friends, they are families and hard workers, they are students and children. We are better than this.
The post spread like wildfire across local social media pages over the weekend. EastIdahoNews.com received nearly a dozen copies of the post shared by various people claiming to be friends of the original poster.
On Monday, the Pocatello Police Department released a statement.
“The city of Pocatello and Pocatello Police Department have been made aware of an allegation that the Federal Immigration & Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) detained an individual in our community,” the statement says. “After thoroughly researching the allegation with federal, state, county, and other local law enforcement officials, we have determined this information to be false.”
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The police statement goes on to say, “We can find no evidence of ICE undertaking such actions in Pocatello. Further, Pocatello Police and no other law enforcement agency in our area have been involved in an ICE operation. The mayor and police chief are committed to the safety and welfare of the community. The protection of our citizens is our top priority.”
To find the post’s origins, EastIdahoNews.com reached out to a local who appeared to be one of the original posters. They were among those who claimed to be a friend of the person who wrote it.
The friend told EastIdahoNews.com the person who wrote the post said, “If you know there (sic) name and contact and, will pass it on to our lawyers. From my friend.”
We never heard anything back.
Since taking office last week, President Donald Trump has issued several executive orders regarding immigrants and immigration. Immigration authorities made close to 1,200 arrests nationwide on Sunday, NBC News reports.
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