Helmeted police in riot gear turned out on Friday evening in a tense confrontation with protesters in downtown Los Angeles, after a day of federal immigration raids in which dozens of people across the city were reported to be taken into custody.

A local immigrant rights organization said more than 45 people were detained in the operations, which were described as “random sweeps.”

Police were deployed in riot gear in Los Angeles to control crowds as hundreds of protestors camped outside a federal detention centre