Panel Members left to right: Sergio Olmos, Vice Mayor Manpreet Kaur, Kevin Clancy, Oliver Ma, and Casey Creamer. Photo by Jose Galinado.

On May 21, community members and local leaders gathered at the Padre Hotel in Bakersfield for a powerful screening of Operation Return to Sender, a documentary investigation by CalMatters. The film examines the controversial January 7 immigration raids in Kern County, uncovering potential constitutional violations and racial profiling by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Produced in partnership with Evident Media and Bellingcat, the investigation follows CalMatters reporter Sergio Olmos as he travels from the El Centro Sector to interview Gregory Bovino, the sector chief overseeing the raids. The documentary questions the legality and accuracy of the operation, ultimately exposing how the federal government may have targeted individuals based on race and detained them without proper warrants.

In his interview with CalMatters, Bovino stated the goal of the operation was clear: “We had a predetermined list of targets. They crossed the border illegally, then they’re coming with us.” However, court documents and declarations reviewed by CalMatters suggest that CBP agents conducted raids based on racial profiling.

The film features raw footage and testimonies from Bakersfield residents impacted by the raids, highlighting the widespread fear and disruption caused in the local community.

Following the screening, a panel discussion brought together several voices behind the investigation, including: Kevin Clancy, co-founder and creative director of Evident Media, Casey Creamer, CEO of California Citrus Mutual, Oliver Ma, legal fellow in the Immigrants’ Rights Project at ACLU Southern California, Bakersfield Vice Mayor Manpreet Kaur, and Sergio Olmos, investigative reporter at CalMatters

Vice Mayor Kaur, the first Punjabi elected official in Kern County, shared how she responded to the raids not only as a city leader but as a community advocate. She received panicked calls from residents, especially from the Punjabi community, many of whom face language barriers and immigration concerns.

“There was information rapidly coming out in English and Spanish, but not in Punjabi,” Kaur said. “All the calls I received were, ‘Is this true? Can you confirm this?’” In response, she uploaded Know Your Rights videos in Punjabi to her social media accounts to ensure her community had access to accurate information.

Oliver Ma of the ACLU, also a member of the Rapid Response of Kern (RRK), spoke about efforts to support those detained. He shared the story of Juan, a Bakersfield resident unlawfully detained during the January 7 raids.

“As soon as we heard of the raid, we split up our legal team and investigators,” Ma said. “The first person I spoke with was Juan, described by his wife as easygoing. He had come to the U.S. twenty years ago.”

Juan has since been deported, leaving behind his wife and four U.S. citizen children. The ACLU, on behalf of the United Farm Workers (UFW), filed suit and was granted a preliminary injunction on April 29, barring ICE and CBP agents from conducting warrantless arrests throughout the Eastern District of California.

Sergio Olmos recounted the difficulty of securing an interview with Bovino, noting that other journalists had been denied. During the interview, he was flanked by armed officers—a standard law enforcement practice—but the experience underscored the tense dynamic.

“I asked if there’s a difference between the elotero (street vendor), the farmworker, and the fentanyl dealer,” Olmos said. “He replied, ‘No, they’re all criminals.’”

Olmos and Clancy spent more than six hours with Border Patrol agents, offering a rare window into the mindset and media tactics of federal immigration authorities.

“They’re trained to talk to the press, but six hours in a car breaks down that professionalism,” Olmos said. “They never brought up Bovino—not once.”

He described the agents as “likable” but emphasized how leadership shapes their approach. One agent, referred to as Agent Lee in the film, initially used the term “migrants” rather than “illegal aliens”—a marked contrast from Bovino’s language. However, once Olmos pointed out the difference, Lee adopted Bovino’s terminology.

“The next two hours, he never said ‘migrants’ again. He said ‘illegal aliens,’” Olmos recalled.

Olmos also revealed that the El Centro Sector employs a special team of five federal agents whose sole job is to create fictional videos of agents detaining migrants—a propaganda tactic. Of the 78 individuals detained during the January 7 raids, only one had a prior criminal record. Many others had their constitutional rights violated by CBP agents, the documentary claims.