From NY Post: Hundreds of unruly anti-ICE protesters were locked in a hostile standoff with federal agents outside the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles Friday.
The mob clashed with officials, who pepper-sprayed the group as it attempted to move closer to the building. Most of the disorderly crowd covered their faces with masks or scarves and some used gas masks. At one point, federal agents deployed what appeared to be tear gas into the crowd to disperse the agitators.
Some of the aggressors scrawled “F–k ICE” in spray paint along a concrete barrier — others defaced the building. They also piled up a large amount of cardboard and other debris outside the building’s parking structure.
The protesters also pushed a large red dumpster toward the entrance as a shield, but the federal agents held their ground, forcing some to slink away from Roybal.
🚨 BREAKING: Even *CNN* is admitting the riots in Los Angeles outside the federal facility are now OUT OF CONTROL
“Protesters have OVERTAKEN this and there’s no police!”
WHAT IS GOING ON, @GavinNewsom? pic.twitter.com/21HAwjnct5
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) January 31, 2026
The LAPD said they’d been invited to the scene by the tenor of the protesters.
“We had hoped that demonstrations today would be peaceful, however, as you can see in this video, the violent agitators invited LAPD due to their actions,” the department wrote.
We had hoped that demonstrations today would be peaceful, however, as you can see in this video, the violent agitators invited LAPD due to their actions. https://t.co/7U2n7cZ2od
— LAPD Central Division (@LAPDCentral) January 31, 2026
The LAPD arrived at the site at about 6:30 p.m., deploying officers on the ground and a helicopter overhead. Protesters were told to “immediately” leave the area.
Officers on the ground were armed with shields, helmets, and batons to push the crowd back from the federal building.
Some protesters dispersed, but others stayed, throwing bottles and rocks at officers, and at federal authorities, who were being hit with “debris, bottles and other objects,” according to the LAPD.
Authorities eventually declared the scene an unlawful assembly.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said five arrests had been made for failure to disperse. LAPD did not immediately confirm that number.
Read more at NY Post
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