George and Esmeralda Doilez are U.S. citizens who live in Brawley and were headed to a dental appointment in North County on Wednesday.
A couple detained by Border Patrol in Boulevard said they believed agents did not have reasonable suspicion to stop them at all, recording the interaction and alleging they were racially profiled, pulled over by an unmarked vehicle as they were scoping out campsites on their way to the dentist.
George and Esmeralda Doilez are U.S. citizens who live in Brawley and were headed to a dental appointment in North County on Wednesday. They said they were exploring Jacumba and the surrounding area for the first time when a dark-colored SUV started following them near McCain Valley Recreation Area, then put on a siren and pulled them over.
“We didn’t think we had anything to worry about,” George said.
George said the Border Patrol agents first approached wearing masks.
“Who does that?” George said. “Criminals do that. Robbers and thieves do that. Kidnappers do that. And that’s what we’re seeing by our own government.”
They lowered the masks, George said, as Esmeralda began to record.
“The reason why we’re stopping you is because you did U-turns and there’s a known alien out in the area,” an agent at the driver’s side window said in the video.
George can be heard telling the agent that he and his wife were avid campers “exploring” on their way to the dentist and that he did not consent to any search.
“If you have a dentist appointment, it probably wasn’t the best decision to be out in the middle of nowhere,” the agent said.
“We have the right to travel anywhere we want to travel,” George responded, to which the agent replied, “You’re absolutely right you do, and I actually have the right and authority to stop you.”
Border Patrol has not responded to request for comment on the stop.
“Why are we not allowed to be here?” George said. “Because we’re not white? Our skin doesn’t match?”
George can be seen on the video showing the agent his ID but not leaving the vehicle, repeatedly saying he was asserting his rights. Border Patrol called a K-9 unit, which detected a small amount of legally purchased cannabis, prompting an agent to say they now had probable cause and the couple would be arrested if they did not get out for a full search of the vehicle.
“Terrified, terrified, absolutely terrified,” George told NBC 7 on Thursday. “As a husband, you’re seeing your wife, you know, shaking and crying. Your natural instinct is: I got to do something to protect her. And then what is this going to lead to? In my mind, I’m thinking of so many things, OK? If I fight these guys, I’m going to lose. I could get killed out here. But why should I allow them to trample on my Constitutional rights? Why should I allow them to get away with this kind of stuff?”
After the full search, an agent can be heard telling the couple that he could seize their vehicle and ticket them for having marijuana but that he would let them off with a warning. About 30 minutes after the encounter began, they were released.
“This place is controlled by goons in masks in unmarked vehicles chasing down American citizens just because of the color of their skin,” Doilez said. “Nobody should be afraid of their own government. They’re here to protect, to serve, not to be pirates.”
George and Esmeralda said they both voted for the first time in 2020, and then again in 2024 – both times for President Donald Trump. They said, as they’ve watched his mass deportation effort unfold in immigration court and at workplaces, seeing the majority of people detained without a violent criminal record, they both have come to regret their votes.
“I feel shame, guilt and anger at the same time because of the promises that he made that he lied to us about, going after the worst of the worst,” George said. “He lied on those and he stole our vote.”
They were going to the dentist because, two years ago, George was injured in an accident at work that destroyed his jaw and nearly took his life. Esmeralda said that the thought crossed her mind that she could have almost lost him again.
“I did think that there might have been a chance,” Esmeralda said through tears. “I remember sitting there crying, thinking like, ‘Oh, my God, if this happens, what’s going to happen? I’m going to see something bad. I don’t want to see that.’”
“We already went through something traumatic two years ago, so, you know — we don’t want to see something else even worse,” Esmeralda continued. “I feel sad this is where we’re at. I can’t believe this is where we’re at.”
Both said they felt the need to record and speak out to raise awareness.
“Do not comply, because complying is going to get you in a prison concentration camp,” George said. “That’s what it’s going to do eventually. Maybe it might be sooner than we all think.”
“We can’t let them take our rights,” Esmeralda said. “Then we’re nothing.”
