Originally published at 12:44 p.m. Updated at 2:30 p.m. June 11, 2025
A man was taken into custody in Boyle Heights Wednesday following a brazen collision involving armed federal agents, in what the Department of Homeland Security is calling a “targeted arrest.”
The incident was reported at 10:47 a.m. in the 3700 block of Whittier Boulevard, said LAPD Officer Tony Im.
Surveillance footage obtained by Boyle Heights Beat shows an SUV ramming into a white sedan as a pickup truck drives up to block the sedan. Soon after, men in protective vests emerge from the SUV and pickup truck, both unmarked vehicles, and point their guns at the sedan. That’s when a man comes out of the sedan with his hands up and walks away from his car.
Another video from the scene showed a man being taken away in handcuffs.
The driver was identified by family as 27-year-old Christian Cerna. Witnesses said a woman and two children were also inside the car.
Secretary Tricia McLaughlin with the Department of Homeland Security described the incident as a “targeted arrest,” adding that Cerna was wanted in connection with an alleged assault against a Customs and Border Protection officer. McLaughlin, in the statement, said Cerna “punched a CBP officer.”
No further details were provided.
Shortly after the crash, a crowd gathered at the scene where multiple LAPD patrol vehicles and LAFD fire trucks were present.
Verita and Nadia Topete are sisters and members of Centro CSO who were at the scene. Nadia Topete described a man being taken out of the car and a woman who held a toddler on one hand. She raised her other hand, “while the agents were pointing guns at her.”
“She was frantic and in distress,” her sister Verita Topete added. “She didn’t know what to do.”
The sisters informed the woman that she had the right to remain silent and that she did not have to sign anything or give them her personal information.
“Once the agent saw that we were giving her information on how she can protect herself, then they started to act frantically, and they were telling her that she can move her vehicle and then she starts yelling at them saying, ‘How can she move her vehicle? Is it even still drivable?,'” said Verita Topete.
An agent got in her car and moved it, Verita Topete said.
“She started pressuring them, asking them for their information. All they did was laugh in her face,” Verita Topete said. “As soon as they saw us making a big commotion, they got scared and they got into their vehicles and they took off. I helped her call the paramedics to get her babies checked out.”
The dramatic collision shook nearby business owners and community members, who questioned the tactics used by law enforcement.
East L.A. resident Misael Morales came to the scene outside of Rudy’s Bargain store to show support for his neighbors who were afraid immigration enforcement was conducting a raid.
“I’ve seen shootings, I’ve seen drive-bys. I’ve never seen anything like this,” Morales said as he shook his head.
Students at nearby Collegiate Charter High School of Los Angeles heard about the activity via Instagram.
“They should let us go home because it’s not a safe environment and not fair to the students. Kids are at risk,” one student told Boyle Heights Beat youth reporter Reana Peña.
