Violent anti-ICE rioter who targeted police finally faces reckoning in federal court

A California man accused of taking part in a violent confrontation during last year's anti-ICE riots in Los Angeles has been sentenced to more than three years in federal prison after admitting he targeted law enforcement officers caught in the chaos.

Ismael Vega, 42, of Los Angeles' Westlake neighborhood, was sentenced Monday to 37 months in prison and ordered to pay $253,415 in restitution for his role in the June 8, 2025, attack, the Justice Department announced.

"Those who attack our brave officers protecting public safety will face federal prison time for their crimes," U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli wrote Monday on X following the sentencing. "Let this be a warning to others who think they can act without consequences."

Vega pleaded guilty in April to obstructing, impeding and interfering with law enforcement during a civil disorder.

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According to court documents, Vega was among a large crowd gathered on the Main Street overpass above U.S. Highway 101 as protests over federal immigration enforcement descended into violence.

Prosecutors said Vega knew California Highway Patrol officers were trapped beneath the overpass when rioters began dropping burning debris, fireworks and other objects toward a California Highway Patrol (CHP) patrol vehicle parked below.

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Court records show Vega repeatedly helped others ignite debris before setting a large piece of cardboard on fire himself. He then held the burning cardboard over the railing, lined it up with the hood of the CHP vehicle and dropped it onto the cruiser.

As the cardboard burned, Yachua Mauricio Flores, 23, poured a liquid onto the flames, causing the fire to grow as Vega stood nearby and gestured toward the blaze, according to prosecutors.

Vega also admitted throwing multiple rocks at officers as they attempted to clear the overpass. He acknowledged that the burning debris and other objects created a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury to the officers below.

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"This civil disorder stood apart in its magnitude," federal prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

Prosecutors cited a statement from a CHP sergeant with nearly three decades in law enforcement who described the impact the attack had on him and his son.

"His experience underscores how violent this incident became and the deep toll it took on all law enforcement present," prosecutors wrote.

The attack unfolded two days after violence erupted against federal agents carrying out immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles.

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Federal prosecutors previously charged seven people in connection with the overpass attack.

According to court documents, Vega, Flores and Adam Charles Palermo, 40, helped drop burning debris toward the CHP vehicle while others threw rocks at officers trying to clear the overpass.

Vega is the fifth person sentenced in the case.

Flores is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 3 and faces up to five years in federal prison.

Palermo, whom prosecutors identified as the lead person charged in the case, is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 14 after pleading guilty to assaulting, resisting and impeding people assisting federal officers with a deadly or dangerous weapon. He faces up to 20 years in prison.