ICE leaves cars abandoned, lawn mowers running when it arrests workers: A new push to secure property (LA Times) [View all]

Cars with shattered windows have been left in streets and parking lots, lawn mowers left running on front lawns, and ice cream carts abandoned on sidewalks.

A growing inventory of deserted belongings has been scattered across Southern California amid the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration sweeps. In each case, the possessions have been left behind by people nabbed without warning by federal agents. Cars. Vending carts. Work tools. Food trucks. When authorities arrested two gardeners outside an Ontario residence, the homeowner went outside to see the lawn mower still running, the lawn half cut and the workers’ truck in the driveway, he told local reporters.

As the raids enter their second month, there is a growing push to see that even after someone is arrested, their belongings are returned to their families.

One local police department has announced it will attempt to return abandoned property, such as vehicles and work equipment, to relatives of those detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

Read more:
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-07-08/ice-abandonded-items