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By Dan Gooding
Associate News Editor
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A United States citizen detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in northern Virginia says he is now questioning his vote for President Donald Trump last November.
Jensy Machado, a naturalized citizen, said he was in a car stopped by agents while on his way to work in Manassas, in the D.C. suburbs, where a large-scale immigration enforcement operation took place earlier in the week.
"They just got out of the car with the guns in their hands and say, turn off the car, give me the keys, open the window, you know. Everything was really fast," he told Telemundo 44 and NBC 4 Washington.
Read More on Politics
Newsweek reached out to ICE for comment via email Friday afternoon.
Why It Matters
ICE has been empowered to conduct increased enforcement action across the country, including the raids in Virginia earlier this week, attended by Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. With promises of mass deportations from President Trump, agents are coming under increasing pressure to deliver, with other reported incidents of U.S. citizens arrested.
Trump has recently made significant gains in favorability and approval among Hispanic Americans, despite — or because of — his sweeping immigration policies.
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What To Know
Machado, who said he voted for Trump in November, told NBC he was on his way to work with two other men when ICE agents stopped them Wednesday morning.
He said the agents were looking for a man with a final order of removal who had given Machado's home address. The U.S. citizen said he knew no one with that name, and offered to show the agents his ID as they had not asked to see any.
"I was telling the officer, if I can give him ID, but he said just keep my hands up, not moving," Machado told the outlet. "After that, he told me to get out of the car and put the handcuffs on me. And then he went to me and said how did I get into this country and if I was waiting for a court date or if I have any case.
"I told him I was an American citizen, and he looked at his other partner like, you know, smiling, like saying, can you believe this guy? Because he asked the other guy, 'Do you believe him?'"
While ICE agents did eventually release Machado, the other two in the vehicle were taken away. The incident had affected his faith in the president, he said.
"I voted for Trump last election, but, because I thought it was going to be the things, you know, like... just go against criminals, not every Hispanic looking, like, that they will assume that we are all illegals," Machado said.
What People Are Saying
Democratic Norther Virginia Representative Don Beyer, on X: "ICE detained a U.S. citizen in Northern Virginia with guns drawn. He offered to show ID and told the officers he was an American citizen, but they handcuffed him anyway. The man is a Trump voter, but says he is reconsidering his support after he was targeted for being Hispanic."
Secretary Noem, on X following raids Tuesday: "Northern Virginia is safer this morning after a successful operation getting criminal aliens and gang members off our streets. Thank you to our brave enforcement officers."
What's Next
It was unclear at time of publishing if an investigation was underway into Machado's temporary detention. Increased ICE activity continues to be reported across the country.
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