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A man seen in a viral video is confronted and arrested Los Angeles residentsand who was eventually arrested by police with a suspected blowtorch, is an illegal immigrant from Mexico, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sources tell Fox News.
Los Angeles police arrested the man after a group of local residents caught him near the Kenneth Fire, allegedly carrying a blowtorch, according to video from Fox 11 Los Angeles.
He is shown with a torch head and a yellow fuel tank, before being attacked on the ground by at least five residents.
Pedestrians help a firefighter pull a hose as an apartment building burns, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in the Altadena section of Pasadena, California. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
ICE sources tell Fox he is an illegal Mexican immigrant named Juan Manuel Sierra-Leyva. He is being held on a probation violation and has not been charged with arson.
ICE intends to make a detainer request for him: a request that ICE be notified of any release so that he can be transferred to their custody and possibly deported. However, they do not expect it to be honored since California is one state “sanctuary”. which greatly limits local and state law enforcement cooperation with the agency.
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A still image from a home security video appears to show a Los Angeles man holding a torch and a fuel tank before residents tackle him and call police as wildfires rage in Southern California. Police said he was arrested but could not confirm he was connected to any fires. (FOX 11 Los Angeles)
A Los Angeles police source previously told Fox News Digital that it’s not uncommon to find people who intentionally set wildfires.
“When you have windy conditions like this, it takes the fires out in a row, which are sick,” the source said. As of last week, there is no confirmed connection between the house fire and any of the fires.
Illegal immigration has been a high-profile political issue, and the Trump administration is expected to launch a mass deportation operation once he takes office next week.
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Firefighters watch as water falls on the Palisades fire in Mandeville Canyon on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Some states have said they will cooperate with the operation, while other state and local officials say they will not, and may even actively resist such efforts.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams recently said he wants to work with the incoming administration to deport those who are violent criminals. But the Trump administration may have the toughest job in California, where not only is there a state sanctuary law, but efforts in local jurisdictions to go even further. prohibiting ICE cooperation.
Fox News’ Michael Ruiz and Matt Finn contributed to this report.
