‘He’s having a seizure’: ICE faces backlash after viral clip shows man losing consciousness while holding child during arrest
The footage, first published by the Boston Globe, shows chaos inside a vehicle in Fitchburg as a woman in the passenger seat desperately tries to revive the man beside her, with a crying child caught in between.
November 8, 2025 07:07 PM IST
First published on: Nov 8, 2025 at 06:47 PM IST
Comments
Print
Share
Whatsapp
twitter
Facebook
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Baltimore Field Officer director Matt Elliston listens during a briefing (AP Photo)
A disturbing video from Massachusetts in the US showing a man appearing to lose consciousness while holding a small child during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrest has raised questions over the agency’s tactics.
The footage, first published by the Boston Globe, shows chaos inside a vehicle in Fitchburg as a woman in the passenger seat desperately tries to revive the man beside her, with a crying child caught in between. Bystanders can be heard shouting, “He’s having a seizure,” as officers attempt to remove the passengers, while one police officer orders the crowd to “back up.”
“They’re trying to rip the baby out of his hand,” one onlooker can be heard yelling in the video.
ICE, however, claimed the video misrepresents what happened. Tricia McLaughlin, an assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), said medical personnel “found no legitimate medical episode,” adding that the family refused treatment. DHS later posted on social media, “Imagine faking a seizure to help a criminal escape justice.”
Imagine FAKING a seizure to help a criminal escape justice.
The target of this operation, Juliana Milena Ojeda-Montoya, is the WORST OF THE WORST.
In August 2025, local police arrested Ojeda-Montoya, a criminal illegal alien from Ecuador, for assault and battery with a… https://t.co/828OUAfan4
The man, identified as Carlos Sebastian Zapata, told the Boston Globe that he fainted after fearing his wife would be detained. “I wasn’t letting go of my wife because they wanted to take her away,” he said. “They pushed me, hit me near the ribs and pressed my neck — that’s when I let go. I had convulsions or something.”
As per The Guardian, ICE confirmed the arrest targeted Zapata’s wife, Juliana Milena Ojeda-Montoya, an Ecuadorian national who was taken into custody. Officials said she faced a local warrant on assault and battery charges after allegedly stabbing a co-worker and throwing a trash barrel at her.
Authorities said the incident began as a traffic stop around 7 am and escalated when a crowd gathered, prompting ICE to call Fitchburg police for backup. Officers described the scene as “hostile.”
President Donald Trump’s intensified deportation campaign, including Operation Patriot 2.0, led to over 1,400 detentions across Massachusetts in September. Earlier this week, a separate ICE operation sparked anger after federal agents in Los Angeles allegedly drove away with a one-year-old US citizen in the backseat of his father’s car following the father’s arrest.
Share
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Baltimore Field Officer director Matt Elliston listens during a briefing (AP Photo) 
