DHS fires back after Dem lawmaker claims she was 'pushed aside and pepper sprayed' during ICE raid

The Department of Homeland Defense DHS on Friday pushed back against accusations from Arizona Democratic Rep Adelita Grijalva who claimed she was pepper sprayed during an immigration raid in Tucson In a post on X Grijalva explained she was pushed aside and pepper sprayed after identifying herself as a member of Congress while seeking information from officers during a U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement's ICE operation near the Taco Giro restaurant ICE just conducted a raid by Taco Giro in Tucson a small mom-and-pop restaurant that has served our population for years Grijalva wrote When I presented myself as a Member of Congress asking for more information I was pushed aside and pepper sprayed DHS ARRESTS DOZENS OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WITHIN HOURS OF LAUNCHING NEW ORLEANS OPERATIONIn a separate post Grijalva called ICE a lawless agency that is operating with no transparency no accountability and open disregard for basic due process DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin swiftly fired back at Grijalva's states saying she was never directly sprayed but merely in the vicinity of someone who was If her contends were true this would be a curative marvel McLaughlin noted But they re not true She wasn t pepper sprayed She was in the vicinity of someone who was pepper sprayed as they were obstructing and assaulting law enforcement THIRD AFGHAN NATIONAL FROM BIDEN-ERA EFFORT ARRESTED IN A WEEK BY ICE AGENTS IN VIRGINIA DHSMcLaughlin also revealed two law enforcement officers were seriously injured during the development In fact law enforcement officers were seriously injured by this mob that Grijalva joined she added Presenting oneself as a member of Congress doesn t give you the right to obstruct law enforcement More information forthcoming The clash also prompted the Congressional Progressive Caucus which includes nearly Democratic lawmakers to call for a congressional analysis DEM-BACKED DIGNITY BILL COULD STRIP ICE OF DETENTION POWERS ERASE IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT CRITICS WARNRep Ilhan Omar D-Minn a deputy chair of the caucus denounced the case as a disgusting display of violence against Grijalva and warned that it reflects a dangerous moment for American democracy The dispute unfolded a day after DHS disclosed it had rounded up at least a dozen criminal illegal immigrants including child sex offenders domestic abusers and violent gang members during Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis No matter when and where ICE will find arrest and deport ALL criminal illegal aliens McLaughlin stated DHS and Grijalva did not directly respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment Fox News Digital's Greg Norman contributed to this review