Video shows ICE agents taking Maryland woman into custody after smashing through car window

A confrontation between a woman and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Maryland was captured on video. 

The video showed the moment that ICE agents smashed a car window and took 51-year-old Elsy Noemi Berrios into custody in Westminster. 

ICE arrest caught on camera

In the video, Berrios can be heard speaking in Spanish to the agents as they stand just outside of her car. 

She asks them to explain why she is being arrested and to provide a warrant. 

One of the agents responded in Spanish that they didn't need to show an order. 

After some inaudible back and forth, Berrios can be heard saying, "Pues, no me voy a viajar." She tells the officers that she won't get out of the car. 

At that point, the agents break her car window and unlock the car before taking her into custody. The video was taken by Berrios' daughter, Karen Cruz Berrios.  

"I would understand if they had a search warrant or anything for her, then okay, you guys can take her out or give it to her and she can step out. There was no need for them to do all of that," Cruz Berrios said.

In the video, Berrios is heard telling her daughter in Spanish not to worry, to relax, and that she is okay. Crus Berrios calls her mother strong, loving and a great parent who has done everything she can to support her family.

Allegations against Elsy Noemi Berrios  

According to ICE officials, Berrios "is an illegal alien, Salvadoran national and known affiliate of the violent transnational street gang, MS-13." 

She was arrested on March 31 by Baltimore ICE agents and remains in custody at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania, according to ICE. 

Her attorney says the government has not presented any evidence of any gang affiliation. She says it also hasn't presented any information detailing why she was arrested.

ICE said Berrios was arrested in January 2017 by U.S. Border Patrol after she entered the U.S. illegally. She was then taken to a Texas Border Patrol station and ordered to appear in court. 

In February 2017, Berrios was released from custody under the ICE Alternatives to Detention Program. The program allows migrants to continue living in the U.S. as they move forward with immigration court proceedings. 

Her attorney says her removal proceeding was dropped in 2023, and Berrios filed an affirmative asylum application, which is still pending now. She also has retained an employment authorization card, allowing her to work while her application is reviewed.

Elsy Noemi Berrios' daughter speaks out

Berrios' 18-year-old daughter, Karen Cruz Berrios, told our partners at The Baltimore Banner that she had recently started working at the same place as her mom, so the two rode to work together. 

"You wouldn't think that you and your mom are going to work and suddenly they are taking your mom for no reason," Cruz Barrios said.

Cruz Berrios tells WJZ she believes ICE agents had been after her mother, as they previously showed up at their home in Westminster twice but were denied entry both times. During both incidents, Berrios requested that they present a warrant. Eventually, the agents left, according to Cruz Berrios.

Her attorney says she still has not seen an arrest warrant for her client.

"We have not received either any arrest warrant or any record of deportability for her," Anna Tijerina, partner at Griffith Immigration Law, told WJZ.

Cruz Berrios says she also crossed the U.S. border with her mother in 2017. The family's attorney says Cruz Berrios and her 24-year-old brother have obtained status separately. 

Elsy Noemi Berrios' alleged gang affiliation

Both ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) allege that Berrios is affiliated with MS-13, a criminal organization that includes immigrants from El Salvador. Factions of the gang operate in states across the U.S. 

"This individual [Elsy] has been identified as an associate of the vicious MS-13 gang," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to WJZ. "Americans can rest assured that she is off our streets and locked up. I hope the media will stop doing the bidding of these gangs that murder, maim, rape, and terrorize Americans, while the media ignores the innocent victims."

Berrios' daughter and her attorney both deny that she has any gang ties, saying the government hasn't presented any evidence of this.

"I just hope that my mom gets out and it's better for her and for other people. I hope they don't keep violating people's rights," Cruz Berrios said.

Berrios' attorney says her client has no criminal history in the U.S. or in other countries.

According to Berrios' attorney, she has a bond hearing scheduled for April 14 in immigration court.