Federal Arrest in Willits Triggers Community Response

Arrest made on orders of an immigration court

The Willits arch. (Photo courtesy of Marcel Marchon via Flickr)

Editor’s note: we will update this report as more information becomes available. Please see the bottom of the article for a list of changes.

The confirmed arrest of a Willits resident by a federal agency has mobilized a network of rapid responders that has grown in the wake of ICE operations in Los Angeles in 2025, as well as the deployment of the National Guard and Marines to that city. Concern about ICE activity in Mendocino County has also intensified following the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renée Nicole Good by federal agents in Minneapolis earlier this year.

While the arrest was initially reported by Willits schools as being made by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (IC), retired sheriff Tom Allman, a Willits resident, said his law enforcement contacts have confirmed that ICE was not active in Mendocino County on Friday.

Mendocino County Sheriff Matt Kendall said he had received reports from citizens of an alleged ICE arrest but that he was unable to confirm any ICE activity. He said the last time similar reports had circulated they were triggered by an arrest conducted by the Department of Homeland Security as part of an investigation into child abuse. In March, FBI agents arrested a 64-year-old resident of Gualala in connection with private comments the man had made on social media.

At 5 p.m., the Mendocino Rapid Response Network confirmed that the man was arrested outside his residence on Friday morning on a document issued by an immigration court.

Earlier in the day, Willits Charter School sent a notice to its “school family” warning that ICE agents may be in the vicinity, according to Director Erin Vaccaro, who declined to provide additional details.

According to a note posted on Facebook, ICE did not come to the school’s campus, but the school did take the precaution of locking their gate.

MendoLocal.News also received a screenshot circulating on social media that purported to be a notice from the Willits Unified School District. When contacted, the district said it had no knowledge of any incident and referred inquiries to Willits Charter School.

Following a record 76-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, the House of Representatives voted Thursday to approve a funding bill for the agency. The vote excluded funding for ICE and certain Border Patrol operations.

Senate Republicans have also initiated a budget reconciliation process to fund the Department of Homeland Security, including ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The process would allow legislation to pass with a simple majority, bypassing the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster threshold.

Change log:

Story updated with comment from Sheriff Matt Kendall, May 1, 12:47 p.m.
Story updated with comment from Tom Allman, May 1, 12:37 p.m.
Story updated with information from the Mendocino Rapid Response Network at May 1, 5:07 p.m.
Story rewritten to remove the confusion created by the addition of new information. The age of the man arrested in Gualala was updated from 65 to 64. May 2, 12:13 p.m.