Guatemalan baker locked bakery to protect workers during ICE arrest, detained
Jul 29, 2026·Location: Lake Worth Beach, FL
Country of origin: Guatemala
Jacob Zapeta-Castro, a Guatemalan national and owner of El Quetzal Bakery in Lake Worth Beach, was detained by ICE agents on July 9, 2026. According to his family and advocates, Zapeta-Castro locked himself and his coworkers inside the business to protect undocumented employees from detention. ICE characterized his actions as fleeing agents. At the time of arrest, Zapeta-Castro held a valid work permit, Social Security number, and driver's license, and had filed for asylum in June 2024 and a withholding of removal petition. Multi-agency law enforcement—including ICE, Florida Highway Patrol, and Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office—surrounded the business with approximately 50 officers while roughly 50 community members protested outside. The standoff lasted hours in extreme heat. He was charged with re-entering the country after deportation and held in ICE detention in Stuart, with his arraignment scheduled for July 29 in federal court in West Palm Beach. His arrest occurred during a four-day ICE operation in Palm Beach County that resulted in 309 total arrests.
Timeline
Sources
- ICE arrests 309 people in Palm Beach County during four-day surge
- ICE, FHP detain man at Lake Worth Beach bakery as crowd watches
- 309 arrested in 5-day Palm Beach County immigration enforcement operation
cw34.com·Jul 22, 2026·archived copy
cbs12.com·Jul 22, 2026·archived copy
- Over 300 arrested in Palm Beach County immigration operations that saw bakery owner detained
WLRN·Jul 23, 2026·archived copy
- ICE-held Lake Worth bakery owner faces up to 10 years in prison on illegal reentry charge
cbs12.com·Jul 27, 2026·archived copy
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