ICE Agents Put US Citizen Teen in Chokehold, Then Sold His Phone at Vending Machine Near Detention Centre

A 16-year-old American citizen was put in a chokehold by immigration agents who later appeared to sell his confiscated phone for cash. Arnoldo Bazan's ordeal began when he and his father stopped at McDonald's for breakfast before school, only to be pursued by masked ICE agents through Houston streets. The tenth grader ended up hospitalised in a trauma unit—and his phone tracking led to a shocking discovery about what happened to the device he'd used to film the encounter.

Arnoldo and his father, Arnulfo Bazan Carrillo, were getting McDonald's when unmarked vehicles surrounded their car. Masked immigration agents started banging on the windows. As his undocumented father drove off, the terrified teenager began filming on his phone. The video shows agents repeatedly ramming the Bazans' car during a slow chase through the city.

Teenager Choked While Pleading

Bazan Carrillo eventually parked and ran into a restaurant supply store. When Arnoldo saw agents taking his father violently to the ground, he went inside too, yelling at them to stop. One agent put Arnoldo in a chokehold whilst another pressed a knee into his father's neck. 'I was going to school!' the boy pleaded.

When the teenager informed the agent he was a citizen and a minor, the agent didn't stop. 'I started screaming with everything I had, because I couldn't even breathe,' Arnoldo said, showing where the agent's hands had closed around his throat. 'I felt like I was going to pass out and die.'

Hospitalised in Trauma Unit

Hours after the incident, Arnoldo was taken to his family home with a bruise on his neck and his shirt destroyed. His sister Maria Bazan took him to Texas Children's Hospital, where staff identified signs of the chokehold and moved him to the trauma unit, The Mirror US reported. Hospital records show he was given morphine for pain and that doctors ordered dozens of CT scans and X-rays, including of his neck, spine and head.

Phone Found at Vending Machine

Arnoldo had filmed much of the incident, but agents confiscated his phone. When he got home, he used Find My to locate the device. It led him to a vending machine for used electronics miles away, close to an ICE detention centre.

From the hospital, Maria called the Houston Police Department and tried to file a report. After several unsuccessful attempts, she took Arnoldo to the department in person, where officers were sceptical of the account and their own ability to investigate federal agents, the family said. A spokesperson for the Houston Police Department said they were not investigating the case.

DHS Claims Contradicted

Tricia McLaughlin, the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, accused Arnoldo's father of ramming his car 'into a federal law enforcement vehicle', but he was never charged for that, according to the investigation. The outlet's examination of his criminal history, separate from any immigration violations, found only that Bazan Carrillo pleaded guilty a decade ago to misdemeanour driving while intoxicated.

McLaughlin also said the younger Bazan elbowed an officer in the face as he was detained, which the teen denies. She said Arnoldo was taken into custody to confirm his identity and make sure he didn't have any weapons. McLaughlin did not answer whether the agent's conduct was justified.

Family Threatened With Charges

The Bazan family said agents threatened to charge Arnoldo if his dad did not agree to be deported. DHS spokesperson McLaughlin did not respond when asked about the alleged threat. Arnoldo's father is now in Mexico. Asked why an officer choked Arnoldo, McLaughlin pointed to the boy's alleged assault with his elbow, adding that 'the federal law enforcement officer graciously chose not to press charges'.

The incident occurred in October but resurfaced this week. An unnamed ICE spokesperson was quoted by the Houston Chronicle in the immediate wake of the incident, claiming the reports that agents 'beat up' the teenager were 'outright lies'. The spokesperson refused to explain who the masked men were if not ICE.

Operating With Impunity

The case highlights escalating concerns about ICE agents operating with apparent impunity. Arnoldo's family attempted to report the incident to Houston Police, but officers made plain their lack of interest in getting involved in anything related to ICE or DHS. The family still has not been interviewed by police about the incident months later. The message appears clear: federal agents can act without facing local law enforcement scrutiny.