Native American actress Elaine Miles, beloved for her roles in Northern Exposure and the landmark film Smoke Signals, says a quiet walk to the bus stop turned into a confrontation straight out of a nightmare. According to Miles, ICE agents in unmarked SUVs surrounded her near Redmond’s Bear Creek Village shopping center and dismissed her Oregon-issued tribal ID as “fake.”

Miles, a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, posted online that four masked men in ICE vests jumped out of black SUVs and demanded identification. When she handed over her CTUIR tribal ID, one agent allegedly sneered, “Anyone can make that.” Another declared it “fake,” as if the federally recognized government printed on the card did not exist.

Miles says the men refused to provide names or badge numbers—fueling her fear they might not even be legitimate federal agents. When she pointed to the enrollment office phone number printed on the back of her ID and urged them to verify it, they refused. When she tried to make the call herself, she says they attempted to grab her phone.

Only when a fifth agent whistled from one of the SUVs did the group abruptly retreat, climbing back into their vehicles and speeding away.

The Independent has contacted ICE for comment. Nearby Redmond and Issaquah had seen ICE arrest activity the same week, part of what KING 5 reports is a new regional directive: 30 arrests per day across Oregon, Washington, and Alaska—double the previous year’s goal.

Miles’ story dropped online the same day the Redmond City Council voted to shut down its Flock license-plate cameras, fearing they might be used for immigration enforcement. There is no evidence the cameras were used in the arrests, but the timing rattled residents already anxious after seeing unmarked vehicles prowling suburban parking lots.

For Miles, the encounter was not an isolated shock. She says both her son and her uncle were previously detained by ICE agents who also questioned the legitimacy of their tribal IDs—before releasing them each time.

To the CTUIR community, there’s nothing questionable about these IDs. The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation—made up of the Umatilla, Cayuse, and Walla Walla nations—signed a treaty with the U.S. in 1855. Their government remains sovereign, their IDs federally recognized, and their citizens legally entitled to live and travel throughout the U.S.

Yet Miles says her family keeps getting stopped. And this time, she was alone.

The actress says she’s still shaken, still furious, and still demanding answers from the agency that has yet to explain why federally recognized tribal citizens—on their own land—keep being told their identities are illegitimate.