A vehicle that sparked panic online as users believed it was an "ICE van" conducting deportation raids turned out to be a regular ice cream truck, according to a report.
Social media users had posted photos and video of the truck online, accusing the Las Vegas ice cream truck of not actually being what they said they were, as reported by KLAS.
However, Billy Settlemyers, the owner of Las Vegas Ice Cream Patrol, denies that any federal agents are involved in his business, or that there are any ulterior motives other than to sell ice cream.
"ICE and Border Patrol don't use trucks from 1985," Settlemyers told the outlet. "I'm an ice cream man, that's it."
The panic came as President Donald Trump began following through on his campaign promise to conduct "mass deportations" across the country. Hundreds of migrants have reportedly been taken into custody already as immigration officials' previous daily quotas of arrests were raised from a few hundred per day to at least 1,200 to 1,500, as reported by the Washington Post.
While the ice cream truck is painted black and white with a fake badge on the side that reads "Ice Cream Patrol," the truck also contains the phrase, "Not affiliated with any law enforcement agencies."
"Thankfully of all the wonderful customers I have in this neighborhood, they came to my defense — and I really appreciate that a lot," Settlemyers told KLAS.
During the first week of Trump's presidency, Mexico reportedly received about 4,000 migrants deported from the U.S., although Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said during a press conference that this was not a "substantial increase" from the weeks prior.
Trump's deportation goals have already run into problems with several Latin American countries as Mexico previously denied a plane carrying about 80 migrants, while Colombia has promised to deny deportation flights until the U.S. establishes a protocol that does not treat Colombian migrants like "criminals."
Originally published on Latin Times
