Federal agents conduct 'knock and talk' visits in Fremont, officials say

Kyle Martin, The Mercury News on Nov 8, 2025

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FREMONT, Calif. — An undisclosed number of federal agents appeared in Fremont on Saturday to knock on doors and seek “voluntary cooperation” with “specific individuals,” officials confirmed with this news organization.

Federal agents entered the city on Saturday morning and left sometime around 12:20 p.m., according to Fremont spokeswoman Geneva Bosques. She said it was unclear which agency the agents were from, how many there were, or where they were conducting their work. Bosques declined to provide further information.

Fremont Mayor Raj Salwan told this news organization he first heard federal agents would be in Fremont from City Manager Karena Shackelford sometime mid-morning.

Salwan said agents were expected to be conducting “knock and talk” visits with some residents throughout the city, though he said neither U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement nor anyone from the Department of Homeland Security contacted him directly to discuss details of their actions.

“As far as I know, this is kind of a voluntary check they’re doing. It’s not heavy handed,” he said. “I don’t have all the details.”

Fremont Police Chief Sean Washington did not immediately return a request for comment Saturday afternoon. A request for comment from federal officials with ICE were also not returned Saturday.

Salwan said he wants to “build trust” in his city between residents and law enforcement, and also called Fremont a “relatively safe city.”

The mayor said the city has “not been a big target” and that people should feel safe.

“We don’t conduct these federal operations, they’re independently done,” Salwan said. “We just focus on our own scope, which is not immigration enforcement.”

Salwan said Fremont is a “compassionate, sanctuary city,” and added “we want folks to be able to trust law enforcement.”

“We don’t want them to be scared. We don’t want them to be in the shadow,” Salwan said. “We follow all state laws in our city policies.”

Saturday’s actions come after Bay Area protesters clashed with federal agents at Coast Guard Island last month following a previous threat from President Donald Trump of an immigration enforcement “surge” of agents in the region.

The protests became tense when Coast Guard officials fired multiple shots at a U-Haul truck, whose driver allegedly attempted to reverse onto the barricaded bridge to the island, striking the driver and another bystander. Federal prosecutors on Tuesday charged the driver with suspicion of assault on a federal officer with a deadly or dangerous weapon.

Elsewhere in the Bay Area, officials are considering adopting “ICE-free zones” in Santa Clara County and San Jose, which would bar federal agents from conducting raids or deportation actions on city or county-owned property. Berkeley and Alameda County also are considering similar legislation.