Two Families Missing. Follow El Toro Loco ICE Raid Updates

A Sudden Disruption at El Toro Loco

On Wednesday, a worker named Corales arrived for her shift at El Toro Loco Mexican Bar & Grill in Lenexa at 4:15 p.m. to find a handwritten "closed" sign on the restaurant's front door. At first, she was confused. But soon, she learned that her co-workers had been detained by federal immigration agents just a few hours earlier.

Earlier that day, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), a unit of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), arrested at least 11 people—seven in Kansas City, Kansas, and at least four in Lenexa—who worked at El Toro Loco. The two restaurants, which are largely staffed by Latino workers, were empty by midday.

At the Lenexa location, staff members who were on duty were locked inside the building before being escorted out in cuffs. Afterward, officers left a copy of the warrant at the host stand. The document stated that agents had seized "miscellaneous documents."

Trinidad Raj Molina, a board member for Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation (AIRR), spoke about the situation after a news conference. He said that during raids, agents often take people "as collateral." He explained that sometimes they might have a warrant, and other times they may not. However, he pointed out that it’s not uncommon for agents to target places like restaurants and take everyone as a result.

When the agents left, they left the restaurant unlocked and the burners on in the kitchen. This raised concerns among local residents and community leaders, who gathered to protest ICE and immigration enforcement. At the AIRR news conference held at the Lenexa El Toro Loco, located at 10088 Woodland Road, attendees held signs condemning the raids and urging the community to remain vigilant.

Lenexa City Council member Melanie Arroyo expressed her disappointment with the raid. She called it a "tragic blow to our community" and emphasized that such actions do not improve safety but instead create fear and trauma for immigrant residents.

During the news conference, AIRR representatives confirmed the number of arrests in Kansas City, Kansas, and said that four or five individuals had been taken from the Lenexa location. An AIRR representative also mentioned that as of Wednesday afternoon, the organization had reached out to two families affected by the raids—one from Kansas City, Kansas, and one from Lenexa.

AIRR is working to connect these families with immigration attorneys and track down where the other workers were taken. However, no facilities or locations have been confirmed, and as of 5 p.m. Wednesday, AIRR did not know anyone's immigration status.

Representatives from the Consulate of Mexico in Kansas City said they had received no information from HSI regarding the workers' whereabouts.

Corales, an employee at the Lenexa El Toro Loco, shared her concerns with The Star. She has been helping her colleagues’ families connect with immigration attorneys. She expressed worry for her own family, especially since her husband, an immigrant, works in construction—a profession that has also been targeted.

She doesn’t know what will happen with her job, either. “There aren’t employees, there aren’t cooks… I’m not sure what we’ll do, but for now we don’t have work,” she said.

The situation highlights the ongoing challenges faced by immigrant communities, particularly those working in industries that are often targeted during immigration enforcement operations. As the community continues to process the impact of the raids, many are calling for support, understanding, and protection for those affected.