An elderly Los Angeles car wash owner, who was beaten by federal agents during an immigration raid in September 2025, filed a federal lawsuit this Thursday for $50 million dollars.
Rafie Shouhed, 80, filed the lawsuit this Thursday, May 21 before the United States District Court for the Central District of Californiadue to injuries he suffered on September 9 during an immigration raid at his business in Van Nuys.
The lawsuit demands compensation of $50 million dollars to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Keep reading: Car wash owner sues $50 million for violent ICE arrest in LA
On the day of the incident, masked federal agents broke into Valley Automotive Wash, at 7530 Van Nuys Boulevardwhere one of the officers was caught on surveillance cameras pushing Shouhed to the ground in a hallway.
“They grabbed one of my employees and I told them ‘Wait, some of these have papers, they have the documentation here.’ And the only thing they said was: ‘Don’t mess with ICE. We are here’. They threw me to the ground, and three of them jumped on me,” the business owner said after the incident.
The owner of the car wash yelled at them that He had recently undergone heart surgery, which had three stents in his chestthat he couldn’t breathe and that he needed an ambulance.
Keep reading: ICE agents beat and arrest 80-year-old man, owner of a car wash in LA (Video)
Federal agents ignored Shouhed’s pleas, and he was handcuffed and taken to the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles. even though officials admitted they knew he had been naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1980.
The elderly man was detained for 12 hours. and was denied medical attention or phone calls to his family..
“Civil Rights Protections Exist to Limit Government Power before someone is thrown to the ground, injured and forgotten in a cell,” civil rights attorney representing Shouhed, V. James DeSimone, said in a statement.
Keep reading: Los Angeles restaurant owner faces possible deportation after being detained by ICE
“Mr. Shouhed was not running, resisting or threatening anyone. “They knocked him down, violently threw him to the ground, crushed him under the weight of three officers, put a knee on his neck and ignored him while he screamed that he couldn’t breathe,” he added.
While in the federal immigration facility, Shouhed observed first-hand the conditions in which the place was found.
“They brought people in trucks, innocent girls with handcuffs and leg irons“said the owner of the car wash in a press conference in September.
Keep reading: Young man from Los Angeles faces challenges after delays in DACA renewal
Shouhed mentioned that there were mattresses on the bathroom floor for people to sleep on and that they only gave him one bottle of water during his stay.
After being released without charge, His son rushed him to a correctly being facilitywhere doctors treated him for symptoms following a traumatic concussion, multiple bruised ribs, severe elbow injuries and bruises.
More than eight months after the incident, lawyers said Shouhed continues to suffer physical pain, psychological trauma and sequelae of traumatic brain injury.
Keep reading: Tucker Collins’ family demands investigation after eye loss in protest in Los Angeles
The lawsuit alleges assault, battery, violation of the California Bane Law (Civil Code Section 52.1), deliberate indifference to a serious medical condition in violation of the Fourteenth Amendmentintentionally inflicting emotional distress and more.
In addition, the lawsuit also alleges that DHS, ICE and CBP maintain policies and practices that tolerate and justify the use of excessive force.
“We intend to hold federal agents accountable.” when they harm an innocent person and then act as if the Constitution does not apply to them. “The harm they inflicted on Mr. Shouhed is deep, long-lasting and life-changing,” DeSimone said.
Keep reading: Organizations warn about the risk of travelers to Los Angeles for the World Cup
The lawyer mentioned that the actions of the agents violated the Constitution, the California Civil Rights Law and basic human decency.
“This was not a police act, It was an assault on an elderly man in violation of his civil rights.. Our democracy cannot survive if federal agents act above the law,” the lawyer reiterated.
Keep reading:
· Hispanic man who was detained after suing ICE is released in Southern California
· Court blocks California law on identification of federal agents
· Young man loses an eye after being hit by a non-lethal projectile during a protest in Los Angeles
