‘Idiots’ interrupt drug bust thinking it was an ICE raid

“Idiots” reportedly interrupted a standard police drug bust in Arizona because they thought it was an immigration raid.

For six months, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Department investigated a suspected cartel member. On Wednesday, the investigation culminated in officers raiding the cartel member’s home in Tucson with a search warrant for narcotics violations, according to local station KGUN.

The raid resulted in the seizure of multiple firearms, in addition to large quantities of cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine, as well as the arrest of the cartel member, who’d reportedly previously been deported.

There was just one problem. The raid was interrupted by a group of protesters who thought the operation was a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid.

“Here’s the crazy part — some idiots, thinking it was an ICE raid, came down and protested,” Pinal County Sheriff Ross Teeple said in the video below:

“They all went there [to the cartel member’s home] thinking it was an ICE raid because these idiots have nothing other than group think,” the sheriff later added in a statement to local station KVOA.

“This is proof how uninformed protests like this can go too far very quickly,” he continued.

He repeated this refrain on station KOLD.

“Last night, we had people protesting a drug bust,” he said. “These idiots came out and protested us getting 5 million fentanyl pills off the streets. They don’t have individual thought, they have group think.”

His officers tried to explain to the “idiots” that the raid was a standard drug bust operation, but the so-called protesters didn’t listen. Instead they blocked a tow truck that was attempting to tow away the cartel member’s vehicle.

“They were not listening, that the police kept telling them that this was a drug investigation and for them to back up,” a local resident told KOLD. “They accused him of being ICE when ICE was not here, so it just got out of control.”

Meanwhile, one of the protesters told KVOA that they thought their actions would “make a big difference.”

“I think they make a big difference. It’s sending a message we’re not going to take all these ICE raids laying down,” they said.

And indeed, following the drug bust, the Party for Socialism & Liberation Tucson published a post to Instagram claiming victory …

“After two hours of peaceful resistance, our community mobilized and successfully driven out ICE and cops, from Tucson Police and Pinal Sheriff Department, out of our streets,” the barely literate socialists wrote in their ridiculous post.

“This victory didn’t come from politicians or officials. Instead, it came from us, the people, standing together in defense of our immigrant neighbors,” they added.

Teeple, meanwhile, stressed to KVOA that these “idiots” really need to get their act together.

“We will always respect everyone’s God-given rights — you have freedom of speech and to peacefully assemble — but these people are pushing those limits every single day,” he said.

Criminal defense attorney Russ Richelsoph agreed, telling KOLD that these protesters really need to watch themselves.

“When you walk out your front door, you’re taking a risk. When you walk out your front door and go to an area where federal law enforcement agents are arresting people, you’re taking an even bigger risk,” he said.

An ICE spokesperson for their part said the agency “fully respects the constitutional right of people to peacefully protest; however, assaulting, resisting, impeding or harassing ICE officers and special agents or interfering in any way as they are executing their official duty is against the law.”

“If any person assaults a federal law enforcement officer, they risk being prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. That being said, ICE remains committed to performing its immigration enforcement mission consistent with federal law and agency policy,” the statement continued.

In a separate incident that occurred in nearby Peoria, a local police officer was assaulted while assisting Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) officers with serving a warrant for drug-related offenses.

WATCH: On June 10, ICE officers served a search warrant related to narcotics in Peoria, AZ. As rioters gathered at the scene one of the rioters assaults an officer.

He was arrested for Aggravated Assault on an Officer by the Peoria Police Department.

President Trump and… pic.twitter.com/ecvWAJt74M

— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) June 13, 2025

Senior Staff Writer
[email protected]

V. Saxena is a staff writer for BizPac Review with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University.

Latest posts by Vivek Saxena (see all)

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.