Del Rey Oaks police knew in advance of ICE presence at Monterey Airport Reps. Panetta and Lofgren are investigating as similar airport arrests are reported around the country.

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By George B. Sánchez-Tello

Del Rey Oaks police now say they were notified in advance that immigration officers would conduct an enforcement operation at Monterey Regional Airport earlier this month. But neither the county sheriff’s office nor Monterey Airport management were aware Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents had detained a woman at the airport until a local human rights organization reported the incident on social media. 

The detention is part of a recent pattern of ICE agents detaining individuals at airports in San Francisco, Oakland, Denver, Las Vegas and Connecticut. 

A woman was detained at Monterey Airport late in the evening of July 17, said Adriana Melgoza, executive director of the Watsonville Law Center and a member of Monterey County Solidarity Network, a volunteer-led human rights organization. The woman was traveling domestically due to a family emergency and was detained before she reached the security gate, Melgoza said. The network was alerted by a friend traveling with the woman.

“The friend saw agents take this woman,” Melgoza said. “They randomly appeared.”    

Del Rey Oaks Police Department handles law enforcement at the airport, which is located off Highway 68 between Monterey and Salinas and bordered by the city of Del Rey Oaks. The airport is under the authority of the Monterey Airport Special District and is not incorporated into any city or the county, though it lies within the Monterey County Board of Supervisor’s fourth district. Four airlines  — Alaska, Allegiant, American and United — operate direct flights to 11 locations across the United States from the small airport, which serves roughly 650,000 passengers a year. 

After multiple inquiries from Voices, Del Rey Oaks Police emailed a media release on July 27, stating they were notified by the Department of Homeland Security that ICE agents would be at the Monterey Airport on July 17. On-duty police officers were notified, according to the press release, but had no contact with immigration agents. 

“Our department is aware of and follows state law to include the California Values Act (SB 54),” the Del Rey Oaks Police said in their statement. The 2017 law prohibits California law enforcement from assisting in immigration enforcement, which falls under federal authority. 

Chris Morello, executive director for the Monterey Airport District, said in an email that airport management learned about the incident after reading a Monterey County Now brief, which cited the Solidarity Network. Airport management was not notified of federal operations there, Morello wrote. 

“The Airport Police, Del Rey Oaks Police Department, maintain a policy not to assist in civil immigration enforcement,” Morello wrote, declining further comment. 

Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto said her department learned of the incident from the Solidarity Network. 

Safety concerns

Who did and did not know about the presence of immigration agents at Monterey Regional Airport raises safety concerns and questions, Melgoza said. Local law enforcement is not typically given advance notice of immigration sweeps or detentions, she said — or at least not given details as specific as what happened in Monterey. 

“It’s strange and concerning that at such a small, regional airport, management and staff were not aware or were concerned about agents walking around their airport,” said Melgoza. “It’s concerning that the police department had information but not the actual airport. It’s not a huge airport. It’s pretty small.”

“It raises the question of coordination — whatever information they’re getting and from where,” Melgoza added, referring to the Department of Homeland Security. 

Monterey County Supervisor Wendy Root Askew flew in and out of the Monterey Airport the week before and after the detention. The airport is part of Root Askew’s supervisorial district. Like Melgoza, Root Askew had questions about the incident and wondered if there were other witnesses, photos or videos of the incident that might help residents and the county.

“It’s critical for communities to look out for one another, to be trained as legal observers, as these abductions continue,” said Root Askew.    

As a special district, Monterey Airport has an independent board of directors who are not required to report to city council or county supervisors, she said; adding that questions about the incident need to be directed to that board. 

The Monterey Airport board of directors, including chair Danial “Dino” Pick and vice chair Mary Ann Leffel, did not respond to emailed questions from Voices. 

Airports also fall under federal regulation, Root Askew said. 

 Reps. Jimmy Panetta and Zoe Lofgren, who together represent the Monterey County coast and the Salinas Valley, emailed a joint statement on July 28 about the incident. 

“Our offices contacted local and federal officials in an effort to obtain any information about this reported incident. Unfortunately, we have not received further details from the federal government at this point,” the statement says. 

The lawmakers said they are still looking into the incident and are “in touch with the Department of Homeland Security to ensure they investigate the matter. In the meantime, we also will continue our push in Congress for immigration agents to abide by commonsensical law enforcement protocols for public accountability, including the mandatory use of body cameras, the removal of masks, and wearing clear identification.”

Panetta’s office confirmed that Monterey Airport management did not receive advance notice nor provide support for the detention and that the detention occurred outside the airport’s secured area. 

Monterey County Solidarity Network, a volunteer human rights organization, first made public the incident on July 18 in a social media post. The notice, in English and Spanish, stated that an individual attempting to board a domestic flight was detained by “men wearing all black without any police identification.” The individual is now in ICE custody, according to the network. 

Similar incidents have been reported in the past two weeks at airports in San Francisco, Oakland, Las Vegas, Denver and two in Connecticut. Unlike in Monterey, those individuals had already passed security screening. Last year, a Santa Cruz County resident was detained at San José Mineta International Airport, Melgoza said.  

The airport operations have been described as “targeted” detentions by civil rights organizations and rapid response groups, and Melgoza said they are likely the result of racial profiling — what have become known as Kavanaugh stops, after last year’s opinion by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh that allows ICE officers to stop people based on their perceived ethnicity, appearance and language.  

The Department of Homeland Security, ICE and Customs and Border Protection officials have not responded to questions from Voices. The Transportation Security Administration, a federal agency that oversees screening of airport passengers and their luggage, has also not responded. 

“Any travel is a risk now,” Melgoza said. “We don’t know who is working with who.”

Local and regional immigrant and human rights advocates and organizations will meet this week to share details and information on recent detentions, including those at airports across the country, to discuss how to respond appropriately, Melgoza said. 

Immigrant communities have been warned against travel except for necessity, Melgoza noted, so any detention at an airport is likely not an interruption of a vacation or summer travel, but of someone attending a family emergency or funeral. 

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