About 50 demonstrators gathered in a Grant Hill neighborhood on Wednesday evening to protest the U.S. Border Patrol's (USBP) presence there as agents awaited to execute a search warrant at a home.
After receiving word that Border Patrol agents were in the neighborhood at 27th and J streets, a group of immigration activists showed up in protest, chanting at agents as they surrounded a home.
Adriana Jasso with Unión del Barrio, an agency that helps citizens involved in incidents involving immigration agencies, said the activists showed up after receiving concerned calls from the community.
"What we're saying is the community is tired of the terror and the fear that ICE and the Border Patrol inflict on our communities and we are saying that it is time for our community to kick out these agencies from their homes from their streets," Jasso said.
She added that immigrants should know their rights regardless of their status.
USBP said they were awaiting a search warrant because they suspected the home was involved in a human smuggling incident from earlier in the day.
Karina Bazrte with the organization Stand United SD said she saw about 15 to 20 Border Patrol agents surround the house. An activist shouted to the people inside that they didn't need to come out or open their doors unless Border Patrol agents showed a warrant, she said.
USBP told NBC 7 they followed someone to that home and made an arrest. They did not clarify what the person was arrested for. Then, they requested a warrant to search the residence.
As agents waited, demonstrators gathered on the street, at least one with a megaphone. The group began chanting phrases like "immigrants are welcome here," Bazrte said.
Border Patrol said agents gained entry at about 7 p.m. It was unclear what, if anything, was found.
The incident to which the home was believed to be connected to occurred by the U.S.-Mexico Border at about 1:30 p.m., according to USBP. Four people were taken into custody in connection with the "human smuggling event that initiated at the international border."
Two U.S. citizens and two Mexican nationals were taken to a Border Patrol station for processing, USBP said. The Americans face smuggling charges.
This story was originally published in Spanish on Telemundo 20. Read that story here.
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