A California woman was arrested Thursday after raising a Mexican flag at a Bakersfield park where an American flag had been flying.
According to the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, Crystal Aguilar, 24, was arrested, according to KERO-TV.
A post from the department on Facebook said deputies responded at 9:36 a.m. to a report that someone was trying to steal an American flag from the park.
When they arrived they found Aguilar and a car stuck in the mud near the flagpole.
The post said the suspect “had cut the chain securing the flagpole, removed the American flag, and thrown it into the mud before raising the national flag of Mexico in its place.”
“When Park Rangers attempted to detain Aguilar, she physically resisted and made multiple verbal threats against them,” the release said.
“You’re not going to tell me what to do, this is Mexican land,” Aguilar told police in a video to YouTube, adding an obscenity.
WARNING: The following video includes obscene language that some may find offensive.
As deputies tried to detain her, she told them, “my people kill you.”
“Touch me, motherf***er, and … your kid dies,” she said.
The video showed Aguilar being confrontational and struggling with the police arresting her.
Aguilar was arrested and booked into jail on charges of trespassing, threatening a peace officer, resisting arrest, having marijuana in a park, and vandalism.
NEW: Woman who cut down an American flag arrested after she threatened to have her “people” k*ll police officers and their children in Bakersfield, California.
FAFO.
24-year-old Crystal Aguilar was seen replacing the American flag with a Mexican flag at the entrance of… pic.twitter.com/EiUxSCTtZq
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 7, 2025
Aguilar is scheduled to appear in court on Monday, according to KGET-TV.
According to KBAK-TV, Thursday’s protest followed one by Aguilar on Wednesday.
“I’m a child of Mexican parents who were deported,” she said. “I ended up in the system, a system that failed me, and like me, there’s many cases.”
Republican Rep. Vince Fong of California said Aguilar had it all wrong in attacking President Donald Trump’s policies.
“The president has been very clear that the focus of these operations is to deal with criminals who are convicted or doing harm,” Fong said.
