A tense scene unfolded on Wednesday morning in Cayo Largo, when federal immigration agents forcibly removed a woman dressed in medical scrubs from her vehicle, despite her repeatedly shouting that she was a U.S. citizen.
The incident occurred amidst a heightened migration operation in the Florida Keys in recent weeks.
At 9:15 AM, in front of Plaza Rosa, at mile marker 103.4 on US 1, agents surrounded a white Toyota Corolla and ordered the driver to exit the vehicle.
According to a video recorded by David Goodhue, reporter for the Miami Herald, several agents - identified as members of ICE, CBP, and the Border Patrol - ended up forcibly removing her.
In the recording, the woman can be heard screaming in desperation: "I am a U.S. citizen, please help me! This is unfair. Why are you doing this to me?"
The agents forced her to lie on the ground, handcuffed her, and placed her in an official vehicle. Shortly thereafter, after checking her driver's license—which they found inside the car—they confirmed that she is, indeed, a United States citizen.
She was released on the spot, but has not been located since then, according to the Miami Herald.
For its part, the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) stated that the woman "refused to cooperate" during the detention.
Its spokesperson, Alan Regalado, stated that she did not want to hand over her license or lower the window when the agents intercepted her. However, he did not clarify what criteria the agents were using to stop vehicles during the operation.
"We cannot go into details about what we are going to look for," was the only response.
The operation was part of a broader deployment that has been active from 7:00 AM to 11:00 AM at Rowell's Waterfront Park, near mile marker 104.5.
Drivers passing through the area reported that the agents were instructing them to keep moving without stopping when queues formed due to onlookers slowing down.
This incident occurs against a backdrop of increased immigration surveillance in the Florida Keys, where several raids have been reported in recent days.
At the end of November, a joint operation by CBP resulted in the arrest of 12 individuals, including several Cubans, all of whom were undocumented and from countries such as Nicaragua, Venezuela, Colombia, and Guatemala.
The arrested individuals were transferred to the Border Patrol station in Marathon, where they are facing deportation proceedings.
The operation involved helicopters, road checkpoints, and agents who stopped vehicles at mile 105, near the Winn-Dixie supermarket.
According to CBP, the detainees had prior charges for illegal reentry after deportation, DUI, illegal possession of firearms, possession of drugs while armed, assault, and domestic violence.
Federal authorities have not yet explained why, on this occasion, an American citizen ended up handcuffed on the ground and then released without charges.
What is clear is that the operations, reinforced since the tightening of immigration policies under the Trump administration, continue to expand in frequency and scope in the Keys, especially in the Cayo Largo area, which agents say has become a "recent area of interest."
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