Laughing Tow Truck Driver Steals ICE Agent's SUV During Immigration Stop: DOJ

LOS ANGELES, CA — A tow truck driver was arrested Tuesday on a federal charge that he towed an immigration enforcement officer's SUV while the agent was attempting to arrest an undocumented immigrant.

Bobby Nunez, 33, is charged with theft of government property. He was expected to make an initial appearance Tuesday afternoon in Los Angeles federal court, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The incident occurred at around 8 a.m. Aug. 15 outside the Da Vinci Apartments near downtown Los Angeles, when an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent and a U.S. Marshal used their vehicles to box in a woman, who was driving in her own vehicle, to prevent her escape, Joseph McKenzie of Homeland Security Investigations wrote in a court document obtained by Patch.

The woman, 23-year-old Colombian national Tatiana Mafla-Martinez, is suspected of having entered the country illegally, according to court documents.

"During the officers' struggle to arrest Martinez, who was not compliant, a tow truck driver, later identified as Nunez, approached Martinez's vehicle and began pressing the passenger side door of Martinez's vehicle on Officer J.A. as he was attempting to arrest Martinez," the court document reads.

The officer, identified only as J.A., told Nunez "you're going to get arrested," while another officer told him to stop closing the door on the agent. Nunez swore at the men and told them "something was going to happen," McKenzie wrote.

That's when a second man — identified only as "H.C." in court documents — approached the woman's vehicle "to interfere with the arrest."

"While officers were addressing the interference from H.C., Nunez got into his tow truck and towed one of the government vehicles that was boxing in Martinez's vehicle," McKenzie wrote.

The keys were inside the vehicle, as was a gun locked in a safe, according to court documents.

One of the officers began chasing the tow truck on foot as Nunez was visibly laughing and recording the running agent on his phone, according to the court documents.

"Officer J.A. observed the tow truck turn eastbound on Temple Street before he stopped his foot pursuit," McKenzie wrote.

Authorities were able to identify Nunez as the owner of the tow truck through government records and social media video, according to court documents.

Bobby Nunez, 33, of South Los Angeles, was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint charging him with stealing a government vehicle used during an immigration arrest last month. Nunez's initial appearance is expected this afternoon in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. He… pic.twitter.com/dBtJDdHSSn
— US Attorney L.A. (@USAO_LosAngeles) September 2, 2025