Immigration agents detain LA man and hold his daughter for hours, family says

Federal agents detained a man outside of a Los Angeles Home Depot and separated him from his daughter on Tuesday morning. 

The Department of Homeland Security claimed Dennis Quinonez, who is a U.S. citizen, threw rocks at law enforcement and wielded a hammer during a nearby immigration operation. Federal agents arrested him for alleged assault.

They also found a pistol inside his car, which was reported stolen from New York. 

CBS LA reached out to DHS to clarify whether the gun or the car, which had California license plates, was stolen.

A video of the arrest shows Customs and Border Protection agents driving away in the man's car, with his 2-year-old daughter strapped into a car seat. Maria Avalos, the man's mother, said federal agents did not release her granddaughter until she produced the child's birth certificate to prove their relationship. 

Federal agents detained the toddler for four hours until Avalos could find her granddaughter's birth certificate, which was still packed in a box since the family had just moved. 

"I was happy to see her there," Avalos said. "I was really happy ... She's back with her mom. She's doing good."

Quinonez is being held pending charges, according to his family. DHS officials added that he also had a warrant for property damage. 

Court records showed that he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor vandalism charge.