ICE Raids Pilgrim's Pride, Shipley Do-nuts, and More
D.Ray Mantle, April 17, 2008
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) carried out raids at a number of worksites across the U.S. on April 16, 2008. The simultaneous raids of five Pilgrim's Pride worksites have attracted the most attention, with more than 300 arrests for immigration and criminal offenses. As detailed in the press release and fact sheet below, ICE is cracking down on identity theft among job seekers.
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91 Pilgrim's Pride workers face criminal charges in ongoing identity theft probe |
April 17, 2008
DALLAS - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents worked through the night processing the more than 300 foreign national workers arrested yesterday at Pilgrim's Pride plants in five states who are suspected of committing identity theft and other criminal violations in order to obtain their jobs.
Of the 311 Pilgrim's Pride employees taken into custody during the enforcement action, 91 have been charged so far with criminal violations, including false use of a Social Security number and document fraud. The workers facing criminal charges have been turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. The remaining Pilgrim's Pride employees are being processed for removal on administrative immigration violations.
All of the individuals arrested during yesterday's operation were interviewed by ICE agents and health care professionals, assigned to ICE from the Department of Health and Human Services Division of Immigration Health Services, to determine if they had health, caregiver, or other humanitarian concerns, and to identify possible urgent medical needs. As a result of those interviews, 58 of the workers were processed and released on humanitarian grounds under supervision, pending future immigration proceedings.
ICE has established a toll-free number that family members can call to get information about a relative's detention status and the removal process. The toll-free hotline number is 1-866-341-3858.
Yesterday's enforcement action is the result of an ongoing ICE-led investigation in cooperation with the U.S. Attorneys' Offices in the Eastern District of Texas, the Eastern District of Arkansas, the Eastern District of Tennessee, the Middle District of Florida, and the Northern District of West Virginia. Also aiding in the investigation are the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General; the Social Security Administration's Office of Inspector General; the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of Inspector General; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; the U.S. Postal Service; the U.S. Marshals Service; the West Virginia State Police; and numerous other state and local agencies.
As part of the investigation, ICE conducted simultaneous enforcement actions yesterday at Pilgrim's Pride plants in Mount Pleasant, Texas; Live Oak, Fla.; Chattanooga, Tenn.; Batesville, Ark.; and Moorefield, W.Va. More specific information about each enforcement location is included on an updated fact sheet available at www.ice.gov.
The management at the affected Pilgrim's Pride facilities cooperated fully with the arrests. Pilgrim's Pride Corp., headquartered in Pittsburg, Texas, is one of the largest chicken-processing companies in the United States.
ICE's ongoing investigation determined that many Pilgrim's Pride workers committed identity theft and other criminal violations to obtain their jobs. ICE agents have interviewed numerous individuals during the course of the probe whose identities were stolen by Pilgrim's Pride employees. Those victims described a myriad of hardships they suffered as a result, including mistaken tax liens, denial of medical and social services benefits, and damage to their credit ratings.
Misuse of Social Security account numbers is a felony that carries a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
-- ICE --
Pilgrim's Pride Fact Sheet
ICE enforcement operation at five Pilgrim’s Pride plant locations
The nationalities of those arrested are: Mexico (130), Guatemala (112), Honduras (59), El Salvador (4), Colombia (1), unknown (5)
Plant Location |
Administrative |
Criminal Arrests |
Humanitarian |
Mount Pleasant, Texas |
0 |
46 |
1 |
Live Oak, Fla. |
2 |
27 |
2 |
Chattanooga, Tenn. |
100 |
0 |
36 |
Batesville, Ark. |
3 |
18 |
3 |
Moorefield, W.Va. |
115 |
0 |
16 |
ARREST TOTALS* |
220 |
91 |
58** |
*As of 4/17/08 at 1:00 p.m. (EDT)
**Released under supervision pending outcome of immigration removal proceedings.
Mount Pleasant, Texas
- ICE PIO Contacts: Richard Rocha Cell: (202) 615-6317 or Carl Rusnok Cell: (214) 850-5940
- Individuals arrested for false use of a Social Security account number.
- Those arrested on federal charges are in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
- If convicted, defendants face up to five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
- After completion of the criminal proceedings, defendants found to have been in the United States illegally will be returned to ICE custody and placed in deportation proceedings.
- The public court documents may be obtained through the U.S. District Clerk’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas: (903) 590-1000
Live Oak, Fla.
- ICE PIO Contacts: Barbara Gonzalez Cell: (305) 970-1294
- Workers charged criminally are being prosecuted for identity theft and/or document fraud.
- The defendants are in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
- Detainees who remain in ICE custody will be housed at several sites in South Fla.
Chattanooga, Tenn.
- ICE PIO Contacts: Gail Montenegro Cell: (312) 446-7872 or
Leticia Zamarripa Cell: (915) 726-8210 - Male workers in ICE custody are being housed at the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia. Female ICE detainees are being housed at Davidson County Jail near Nashville,Tenn..
Batesville, Ark.
- ICE PIO Contact: Temple Black Cell: (504) 329-2588
- Those arrested on federal charges are in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
- Individuals being detained on immigration violations are being held at the Pulaski County Detention Center in Little Rock, Ark.
- The public court documents may be obtained through the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas.
Moorefield, W. Va.
- ICE PIO Contact: Pat Reilly Cell: (202) 615-5743
- Male workers are being detained at the York County Prison in York, Penn. Female detainees are being held at Clinton County Correctional Facility in McElhattan, Penn.
Identity Theft Victims
During this investigation, ICE agents interviewed many identity theft victims:
- Victims who were notified by the Internal Revenue Service they owed taxes on as much as $17,000 in unreported employment wages;
- Victims who were denied health care, unemployment, and Social Security benefits due to the wages reported in their names by identity thieves;
- Victims who were arrested on warrants issued for crimes committed by the person who stole their identity.
# ICE #