Lang
9/25/25
Local elected leaders will speak at a rally on Friday afternoon in support of a worker from Bread Garden Market who was taken from his workplace on Thursday.
The local immigrants’ rights group Escucha Mi Voz Iowa reports that Jorge Elieser González Ochoa was taken from the Bread Garden by force by two individuals wearing plain clothes just before 11 a.m. The incident was captured on video, which has since circulated on social media. At no point in the video do the two men identify themselves, although a second video has since surfaced in which one of the men can be heard saying “federal agent”. Escucha Mi Voz claims both men were with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The group also says González Ochoa had been living at the Catholic Worker House on Sycamore Street.
Iowa City mayor Bruce Teague, Johnson County Supervisor Jon Green, State Representative Elinor Levin, and other community leaders will be among those speaking at a rally set for 11:00 Friday morning near the Weatherdance fountain on the Ped Mall. Also appearing will be members of González Ochoa’s family.
Escucha Mi Voz says the abduction disrupted business, terrified customers, and put the community at risk.