On June 25, 2025, Yuriana Julia Pelaez Calderon, a 41-year-old Mexican national living illegally in South L.A., told a wild story.
She claimed that immigration agents in unmarked cars snatched her from a Jack in the Box parking lot, hauled her to a warehouse, and forced her to sign deportation papers. Her family even held a press conference, shared dramatic photos, and set up a GoFundMe page asking for $4,500 in donations.
But this week, the U.S. Department of Justice exposed it all as fake.
Surveillance footage showed Calderon calmly getting into a silver Nissan, not dragged away. No panic. No struggle. Phone records showed she was using her iPhone the entire time she claimed to be “kidnapped.”
Now she’s facing federal charges for conspiracy and lying to the feds. Prosecutors say more people may be charged.
MEDIA HOAX EXPOSED
The media claimed that an LA woman was shoved into an unmarked car by ICE, taken to a building, and starved.
Turns out she STAGED the entire thing and is now being charged with multiple crimes.
The media ran this completely fake story. All they do is lie. pic.twitter.com/JNWFtA4KFW
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) July 17, 2025
Media Pushed the Story Without Checking
It didn’t take long for local TV stations like KTLA and sites like The Latin Times to jump on the story. They reported it as fact, no questions asked. And people believed it.
The problem is, this isn’t new. A 2023 Journal of Communication study found that 68% of media outlets published immigrant abuse claims without verifying the facts.
That means stories like this are often taken at face value – especially if they paint immigration enforcement in a bad light.
It’s hard not to draw comparisons to other fake stories, like the Jussie Smollett case. That, too, made headlines before anyone checked the facts.
Why Would Someone Do This?
Trump’s policies have already doubled immigration arrests in 2025. There’s talk of testing legal boundaries like birthright citizenship, and using the old Alien Enemies Act to speed up deportations. Just recently, 137 Venezuelans were sent to El Salvador’s high-security CECOT prison.
These aren’t soft policies. They’re tough by design.
So when someone pulls a stunt like this, it’s not just about personal drama. It plays right into a larger political effort to smear ICE and slow down enforcement.
Sadly, it’s not the first time someone’s tried to make money off immigration fears. A 2024 Federal Trade Commission report showed immigration-related fraud complaints doubled in just one year. Some scammers took as much as $100,000 from victims.
People are scared, and crooks are taking advantage of that fear.
Public Outrage Is Growing
Conservative voices on X have called it a “media hoax.” Many users say this proves the mainstream media can’t be trusted.
Another user said this scam stole attention and resources that should’ve gone to real threats, like drug traffickers and cartels bringing fentanyl across the border.
A June 2025 Gallup poll found 50% of Americans now support mass deportations. After this hoax, that number could rise.
What Happens Next?
Calderon faces up to five years in prison for each charge, though her undocumented status might mean deportation instead. Homeland Security is also looking into whether anyone else helped plan the scheme.
Meanwhile, KTLA still hasn’t taken down its original story as of Friday morning. Don’t hold your breath waiting for an apology.
In a time when Americans want real answers and real accountability, this hoax is a reminder: Truth still matters. So does checking the facts before running with a story.
This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
