Protesters recounted the brutal assault by Homeland Security agents in Santa Ana

A young protester grabbed the collar of his shirt, struggling to stop him as a Department of Homeland Security agent dragged him into a federal building in Santa Ana on Friday, according to a statement he released to the justice organization.

The protester, a 21-year-old who asked that his name appear with a K, was hit by a round of gunfire. with an agent only feet away. He saw his blood pooling under him – “black and thick,” and wider than his head.

UK urged the agents to call an ambulance, he said in a statement. Instead, the diplomats mocked him, “laughing at the fact that I will never see out of my left eye again,” he said.

Rue El Amar, a friend of K’s, read a statement on his behalf during a press conference Tuesday, held by Dare to Struggle, the social justice organization K is involved with, in front of the Santa Ana jail.

Protesters gathered in front of the federal offices in Santa Ana on Friday to protest the fatal shooting in Minnesota of Renee Good. UK was injured and fellow protester Skye Jones was arrested.

Video footage of the incident shows three agents approaching the group before one agent tries to detain the youth, prompting at least three protesters to try to intervene.

The video then shows at least one agent firing into the crowd non-lethally, before pointing and shooting a protester in the face. UK falls to the ground after being shot, holding his face as the crowd retreats.

UK has been in the hospital since Tuesday afternoon, as they are waiting for a police report that can identify what kind of weapon was used. His doctors are concerned about neurotoxins from the bullet, he said.

“I begged him, call an ambulance,” El Amar read. “I thought I was going to bleed out on the floor of a federal building with a DHS officer holding my head down like a trophy.”

K is now completely blind in his left eye, his tear duct has been destroyed and “the jackets in my eye are still holding,” he said. Doctors found pieces of plastic and glass in his skull and metal in his stomach, and “took a piece of plastic the size of a nickel out of my eye,” he said.

A piece of metal was inserted just millimeters from his carotid artery, which would have killed him. Doctors were unable to remove some of the bullets from his skull and “he will have to live with braces in there for the rest of my life,” he said.

“I focused on the words of the people, the words of my friends and comrades, I believe that this is what kept me alive, I hear them continue to fight despite how aggressive our oppressors were,” said K.

Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, previously told The Times that “a crowd of 60 rioters threw rocks, bottles and explosives at police outside the federal building.”

On Tuesday afternoon, the department said in a statement: “This makes no sense. DHS law enforcement officers took this thug to the hospital for treatment and he was released that night. … Make no mistake: Rioting and attacking law enforcement is not only dangerous but a crime.”

A spokesperson for the Santa Ana Police Department said that the only violence that night was the protesters who threw the agents.

Connor Atwood, a member of Dare to Struggle who was present when the incident happened, said he did not see bottles or stones being thrown. Some explosives were placed near the road but away from the building’s entrance, he said.

Jones, who also spoke during the press conference, was arrested when the incident happened and was held for about three days until he was released yesterday, they said during the press conference. Jones said they were not told of the charges against them until this morning when they were released.

Jones said they hope Friday’s incident makes people “open their eyes” to the violence committed by immigrants against “innocent citizens who are just trying to protect their neighbors and friends,” they said.

“If we’re facing those who enforce the threat of ICE, they’re going to pull us out of the crowd. They’re going to shoot us point blank with pepper ball bullets, and they’re going to throw us to the ground,” Jones said. “Oppression is inevitable when we seek justice, so we must not be afraid of it.”

Staff Writer Ruben Vives contributed to this report.