Hamden community rally to demand answers after ICE raid at car wash

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8 months ago

Hamden community rally to demand answers after ICE raid at car wash

HAMDEN, CT (WFSB) – Community members planned a rally outside the Hamden Police Department Tuesday evening to demand answers about an ICE raid at a car wash last week.

The raid led to the detainment of eight people at Optimo Car Wash on Dixwell Avenue.

Advocacy groups said that the people ICE grabbed have young children in local schools.

The detentions happened just months after Hamden’s Legislative Council passed a “welcoming city” ordinance that promised to help protect immigrant communities.

According to police, a Federal Special Agent from Homeland Security Investigations contacted Hamden police at around 8:00 a.m. last Wednesday morning to let them know they were going to be conducting an investigation on Dixwell Avenue in Hamden between 9:15 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. Police were told that their assistance was not needed.

Community members said they question why the police department did not take action to prevent the detentions after receiving that advanced notice, but police say the Special Agent did not provide an exact address and did not mention “ICE” at all or refer to it during the call.

Advocacy groups said the raid represents a failure of the town’s new ordinance.

They called for accountability and financial support for affected families.

“For justice, we call on the City of Hamden to provide financial support to cover legal expenses—including bail—and to support the families now suffering not only from the trauma – but also from the loss of income,” said John Lugo from Unidad Latina en Accion, a community center in New Haven.

Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have defended the police department’s response. They said the officers could have been in danger if they tried to interfere with the federal operation.

Lieutenant Robert Manfield, the Public Information Officer for the Hamden Police Department released a statement on the raid, saying the Hamden Police Department complied with the State of Connecticut’s Trust Act.

On October 15, 2025, at approximately 8:13 a.m., Hamden Police Dispatch received a phone call from a Federal Special Agent from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The Special Agent informed the Dispatcher that HSI would be conducting an investigation on Dixwell Avenue in Hamden between 9:15 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. However, the Special Agent would not provide an exact address nor a cross-street location and clarified that HSI did not require assistance from the Hamden Police Department. Notably, the Special Agent did not mention “ICE” at all or refer to it during the call. The Special Agent estimated that their investigation would take about 15 minutes and assured Hamden Police that they would notify them once the investigation was complete. At approximately 11:04 a.m., Hamden Police Dispatch received a call from the Special Agent indicating that the HSI investigation had concluded. The Hamden Police Department completely complied with the State of Connecticut’s Trust Act. No Hamden Police Officers were present or involved in the event. The Hamden Police Department was not provided any details and/or specifics of the ICE operation until after the event had taken place. The Hamden Police Department’s Ethics and Integrity Unit has commenced an investigation to determine all facts pertinent to this incident.

The community rally began at 5 p.m. outside the Hamden Police Department.

The identities of the people taken into custody have not been revealed.

Channel 3 reached out to ICE to see if they had any criminal charges against them. They did not respond.

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