Feds bust eight Mexican immigrants in Valatie

By: MATTHEW SHEEHEY 04/06/2007

VALATIE-United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested eight people in the village Wednesday, April 4.


"We encountered eight individuals who were living in the U.S. illegally and arrested them and they're being detained," said Mike Gilhooly, a spokesman for ICE, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security.
He said the suspects are from Mexico, and he believed they are all men.
Mr. Gilhooly said he could not comment on the specifics of the investigation, including what brought ICE officers to Valatie.
"Officers encountered these individuals while working in the area," he said.
The Columbia County Sheriff's Office assisted with the arrests, confirmed Lieutenant James Andrews, who directed questions to ICE.
State Police were also on the scene.
Mr. Gilhooly said he could not release the suspects' names or where they were taken.
"They have been charged with being in the country illegally, and they'll appear in immigration court," he said.
A judge will determine whether the men are sent back to Mexico, but Mr. Gilhooly could not disclose a timeline for that process.
Also unclear-because Mr. Gilhooly could not comment on the matter-is whether the suspects were employed in the area.
Asked whether they have families here, he said he did not know.
The ICE officers who made the arrests are assigned to the Buffalo area of operations, which covers this region, said Mr. Gilhooly.
Last month 20 immigrants from Central America were arrested at a Colonie motel after some of them were pulled over by police
They were working on a construction project.
In a much bigger case, 361 undocumented workers were arrested at a manufacturing plant last month in New Bedford, Mass.
Some of them were separated from their children.

To contact reporter Matthew Sheehey e-mail msheehey@IndeNews.com.


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