Maria Pacheco, the mayor of Kerman, California, has been accused of pursuing and harassing a man she mistakenly believed was an ICE agent. This incident took place on Wednesday.
Eric Bridges, a resident of Fresno, claimed that Pacheco followed him for about 25 minutes to his sister’s house, misidentifying him as an ICE agent, as reported by GV Wire. In a TikTok video, Bridges detailed the encounter and later filed a formal complaint on Monday.
“I am not, nor have I ever been, an employee of Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Department of Homeland Security,” Bridges, who describes himself as a hairstylist, stated in his complaint.
As he was driving to his sister’s place, Bridges noticed an orange car closely tailing him and taking pictures of his vehicle, which he found alarming. He parked near a park, but the orange car blocked him in, escalating the situation. After being circled and photographed, he managed to leave, with the orange car following him all the way to his sister’s home.
During a confrontation, the driver accused Bridges of “looking like ICE.” After that, he began filming. The driver, who turned out to be Pacheco, responded with an obscene gesture and drove off. Bridges later reviewed his footage and recognized her as the driver.
Bridges reported that he has since received threats from those who believe he is affiliated with ICE, as indicated by Fox 26 News. According to his complaint, Pacheco allegedly stated, “Don’t worry about who I am, I’m someone important… I’m looking for ICE, and you look like ICE.” The Daily Caller News Foundation reached out to Pacheco for a comment, but she did not respond.
Interestingly, Pacheco has previously filmed herself confronting people she suspected of being ICE agents, according to Fox 26 News.
Bridges expressed worry over Pacheco’s behavior, noting her attempt to present herself as a law enforcement figure while she is actually just a politician without police authority.
This incident follows a wave of other Democratic politicians advocating against cooperation with ICE. Additionally, there has been a reported nearly 700% rise in assaults on ICE officers since last year. In a recent statement, Democratic New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani urged garage and parking lot owners not to rent out their spaces to ICE, asserting that ICE is not welcome.
