Rafie Shouhed, 80, is seeking $50 million from federal agencies after alleging ICE agents assaulted and detained him during a September 2025 raid on his Van Nuys car wash. DHS disputes the claims, saying Shouhed obstructed the operation.
*Rafie Shouhed, an 80-year-old Van Nuys car wash owner and naturalized U.S. citizen, filed a * federal civil rights lawsuit this week against the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Border Patrol, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He alleges federal agents assaulted him, detained him for 12 hours without medical care, and caused lasting injuries during an immigration raid at his business last September.
The lawsuit was filed May 21 in Los Angeles federal court. It marks the first public legal action from Shouhed, who has said he continues to suffer from physical injuries and psychological trauma stemming from the September 9, 2025 raid on Valley Car Wash on Van Nuys Boulevard.
According to the complaint, Shouhed was inside his car wash when masked agents arrived in multiple SUVs in the late morning. The lawsuit alleges that after Shouhed approached an agent to ask what was happening, he was shoved to the ground inside a hallway.
Shouhed says he then stepped outside and offered to provide documentation proving his employees were legally authorized to work. Instead, the suit alleges, agents cursed at him, shoved him, and body-slammed him onto the pavement.
"Civil rights protections exist to restrain government power before someone is thrown to the ground, injured and forgotten in a holding cell," said V. James DeSimone, Shouhed's attorney, in a statement.
The complaint alleges three agents then jumped on Shouhed's back. One placed a knee on his neck while others wrenched his arms behind him. An armed agent stood guard, the suit says.
From under the pile of agents, Shouhed allegedly cried out that he had recently undergone heart surgery, had three stents in his chest, and could not breathe. He begged for an ambulance, the lawsuit states. The complaint alleges agents ignored his pleas.
The Department of Homeland Security pushed back against the lawsuit's allegations the day after it was filed.
DHS said Shouhed was lawfully arrested for assaulting an immigration officer and attempting to obstruct the raid.
"On September 9, U.S. Border Patrol conducted a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Van Nuys, California, that resulted in the arrest of five illegal aliens from Guatemala and Mexico who broke our nation's immigration laws, including one who was removed from the country twice in 2015," DHS said in a statement.
DHS added that "the owner of Valley Car Wash, a U.S. citizen, obstructed the operation and was arrested for assaulting and obstructing a federal law enforcement officer."
DeSimone disputed the agency's account. His attorney said surveillance video shows no violence or attempted obstruction by Shouhed.
"We have provided clear and compelling video evidence to the United States of America demonstrating that Mr. Shouhed did not obstruct anyone nor did he assault any federal law enforcement officer," DeSimone said.
The lawsuit alleges that after the takedown, Shouhed was handcuffed and taken to the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles. He says agents there acknowledged he was a naturalized U.S. citizen, having become a citizen in 1980. Despite that knowledge, he was held for approximately 12 hours without charges, without medical evaluation, and without access to his phone or family, according to the complaint.
Shouhed described the detention facility during a September 2025 press conference.
"They were bringing in people with trucks, innocent little girls with handcuffs and shackles on their feet," Shouhed said.
He said detainees slept on mattresses on the bathroom floor and were given only one bottle of water while held in what he described as a sweltering garage.
After his release without charges, Shouhed's son took him to a hospital. The lawsuit says doctors diagnosed him with:
The complaint alleges Shouhed continues to experience shortness of breath, chest pain that worsens with movement, sleep disruptions, anxiety, and intrusive recollections. Follow-up cardiology and pulmonary evaluations are reportedly being arranged because of his cardiac history.
Shouhed also temporarily closed his car wash after the raid. The lawsuit alleges that none of his employees, including U.S. citizens, returned to work initially due to fear.
The suit asserts that DHS, ICE, and CBP maintain policies and practices that tolerate and condone excessive force. It seeks damages for assault, battery, violation of the Fourth Amendment, violation of the Fourteenth Amendment through deliberate indifference to a serious medical condition, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and violation of the California Bane Act.
DHS did not immediately respond to a request for additional comment on the lawsuit's progress.
The case is pending in Los Angeles federal court.
This article was generated with AI assistance.