An Immokalee-based organization reported Saturday that United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, aided by Fort Myers Police and the Lee County Sheriff's Office in some areas, were in several locations across Lee County today.
Footage posted to the Facebook site of the Unidos Immokalee organization showed some masked and camo-uniformed people as well as Fort Myers Police Department units speaking with people in a white van along Palm Beach Boulevard early today.
Two men were later removed from then van and placed, in restraints, inside a nearby unmarked van.
Unidos Immokalee describes itself as a collective of people coming together to elevate voices and demand change.
A spokesman for the group, who wished to remain anonymous but said they were a community member, said it was unknown yet how many people had been apprehended but had heard of at least 2 people being taken, one walking and another in one of their vehicles.
Unidos Immokalee also posted video footage of the van stop on their social media site.
The spokesman said that agents from the ICE ERO division were seen. ICE ERO is Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), which is a division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security responsible for enforcing U.S. immigration laws.
Unidos Immokalee also issued the following statement:
"Community members have seen and been racially profiled by ICE and ERO has been collaborating with LCO all over Palm Beach Boulevard, Lehigh Acres, and Bonita. They have used public spaces to target people including staging at the Lehigh library, Walmart, and downtown. A driver they pulled over on Palm Beach Boulevard said they were pulled over for a missing license plate light. The officers identified themselves as ICE and confirmed they are out looking for people. They asked the guys questions and let them go. They are stopping multiple work vehicles across SWFL in predominantly Latino areas, which has increased fear of citizens and non-citizens alike. We are expecting this will decrease trust in public safety and reporting of crime, loss of income for the most vulnerable, and increased mental health challenges for children and adults."
The video posted to the group's social media page showed two men being taken in restraints and placed into an unmarked white van.
The group's spokesman said there were also unidentified personnel in military-style camouflage uniforms seen but could not confirm if they were National Guard members. The video caught images of the camo-uniformed figures.
The Unidos Immokalee spokesman also described the group as legal overseers.
"ICE and ERO were taking photos of those documenting as a form of intimidation this morning," the spokesman texted to WGCU News.
Attempts to get comment from agents via the ICE.gov email were met with this message: "Due to the lapse in federal funding, this website will not be actively managed. This website was last updated on September 30, 2025, and will not be updated until after funding is enacted. As such, information on this website may not be up to date. Transactions submitted via this website might not be processed and we will not be able to respond to inquiries until after appropriations are enacted.”
A query to LCSO drew the following response from LCSO Public Affairs Commander Anita Iriarte:
"The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has worked to train and deputize select agency personnel to assist state and federal partners with immigration enforcement operations.
"In collaboration with ICE, LCSO deputies perform specified immigration officer functions under their direction and oversight. Sheriff Carmine Marceno and his team take pride in the positive working relationship fostered with our partners at Department of Homeland Security, and will continue to work cohesively in furtherance of the mission."
Requests for comment sent to FMPD were not immediately responded to.
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