JUNO BEACH, Fla. — Border Patrol agents investigated cars in the parking lot of a Juno Beach church to detain at least one undocumented migrant, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court last week.
WATCH: Border Patrol surveils Juno Beach church parking lot
According to court records, the Border Patrol agent said federal immigration law enforcement employees began surveillance at the parking lot for Oceanview United Methodist Church after Juno Beach police received complaints about construction workers illegally parking cars.
A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the government agency overseeing Border Patrol, didn't immediately tell WPTV the number of people detained after their surveillance activity.
Juno Beach Police Chief Brian Smith said they received no complaints about illegal parked cars at the church, contradicting the narrative Border Patrol agents told a federal judge in a criminal complaint. He said he was upset federal agents didn’t notify him about the operation until a suspected undocumented migrant escaped.
“Typical government,” Smith said to WPTV’s Ethan Stein. “One hand doesn’t know what the other hand is doing.”
He also said his understanding was the operation was at a neighboring construction site, but the criminal complaint WPTV obtained from the Southern District of Florida clearly indicates the operation and detainment happened at Oceanview United Methodist Church.
“On or about January 15, 2026, West Palm Beach Border Patrol Agents conducted surveillance at that location and observed several subjects park their vehicles in this lot,” wrote the Border Patrol agent in the criminal complain. “West Palm Beach Border Patrol Agents conducted record checks using law enforcement databases on the vehicles parked in the lot, which revealed that many of the vehicles were registered to subjects with no legal right to be in or remain in the United States. On or about January 16, 2026, Border Patrol Agents encountered several subjects at 701 Ocean Dr, Juno Beach, FL 3340."
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Jackie Koehmstedt, church administrator for Oceanview United Methodist Church, said she wasn’t aware of any complaints from the church about people parking on the property. She also said she the church didn’t know federal agents were conducting an operation at their facility until somebody mentioned a scene outside the church.
WPTV’s Ethan Stein did see a sign not allowing construction trucks on the property, but there were some contractors with trucks parked in their back parking lot.
This operation comes after the Trump administration rescinded policies, which previously prohibited immigration law enforcement officers from entering certain “protected” locations, in January 2025. Those protected places included places of worship, schools and hospitals. A spokesperson from the Department of Homeland Security said these policies protected criminals.
“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” said a spokesperson. "The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense.”
However, the criminal complaint said the parking lot being surveilled was being used by construction workers at a nearby construction site.
A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Protection couldn’t answer WPTV’s questions by publication and said the process to get an answer could take around a week.
