ICE disputes Arizona Rep. Grijalva’s pepper spray claims during Tucson operation
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On Wednesday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), D-Ariz. He accused his representative, Adelita Grijalva, of joining the “rioting mob” and trying to interfere with agents during last week’s mass arrest operation.
The accusation came after Grijalva claimed he was “pushed aside and pepper-sprayed” during an immigration raid in Tucson on Dec. 5. This claim was a statement that ICE flatly rejected.
“During the operation, U.S. Representative Adelita Grijalva joined the rioting crowd and attempted to obstruct law enforcement, then falsely slandered law enforcement on social media by claiming she had been pepper sprayed,” ICE said in a statement. he said.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Grijalva’s office for comment.
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Law enforcement engages with protesters following an ICE raid on a restaurant in Tucson, Arizona, on Friday, December 5, 2025. The business, Taco Giro, is being investigated on suspicion of immigration and tax evasion. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
ICE and its federal partners arrested 46 illegal immigrants during the operation, the result of a “multi-year investigation into a transnational criminal organization engaged in labor exploitation, tax violations, and immigration violations,” the agency said.
ICE said “more than 100 agitators” showed up at one of the locations it searched and “attempted to disrupt law enforcement operations.”
“The agitators quickly turned violent, attacking officers and slashing tires,” ICE added.
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Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Wednesday pushed back against accusations from Arizona Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva, who claimed she was pepper sprayed during an immigration raid. (via @Rep_Grijalva X)
In a post on X on Friday, Grijalva said he was “pushed aside and pepper sprayed” after debriefing officers during ICE’s operation near the Taco Giro restaurant.
“ICE conducted a raid on Taco Giro in Tucson, a small mom-and-pop restaurant that has been serving our community for years,” Grijalva wrote. “When I presented myself as a Member of Congress to get more information, I was pushed aside and pepper sprayed.”
Grijalva also called ICE a “lawless agency” in a separate X post that “operates without transparency, accountability, and with blatant disregard for basic legal processes.”
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Department of Homeland Security Deputy Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin immediately disputed Grijalva’s account, saying he was never sprayed directly but only “in the vicinity of someone involved.”
“If his claims were true, this would be a medical miracle,” McLaughlin said. “But these are not true. He was not sprayed with pepper spray. He was near someone who was exposed to pepper spray because of someone who attacked and obstructed the police.”
ICE said two people in the crowd were arrested; one for assaulting a federal law enforcement officer and the other for damaging a government vehicle. Two Homeland Security Investigations Special Response Team operators were also injured.
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Protesters stand behind a door locked with a bike lock that prevented federal agents from exiting a restaurant in Tuscon, Arizona, after an ICE raid of the business on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
When reached for comment, DHS referred Fox News Digital to ICE’s statement on the operation. ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
