21 illegals netted at construction site
April 10, 2007
By Tony Bridges

Bay County Sheriff’s Office deputies raided a beach construction site Monday morning and arrested more than 20 illegal immigrants.

The agency was tipped off last week when a deputy went to the site at 4101 Magnolia Beach Drive looking for a theft suspect. When he arrived, construction workers scattered, running through the yards of nearby homes, according to the Bay County Sheriff’s Office.


One of the workers told a neighbor he was fleeing immigration agents, and the neighbor told the deputy, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

So Monday morning, the Sheriff’s Office descended on Magnolia Plantation on St. Andrew Bay, owned by the Rea Development Co., an Atlanta business.

Deputies arrested six workers on charges of fleeing and eluding, resisting arrest without violence and possession of forged documents, said Sgt. Marc Tochterman, a Bay County Sheriff’s Office spokesman.

Deputies also picked up 14 other undocumented workers and turned them over to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents for processing at Port Panama City.

Three of the fleeing workers jumped a fence at Naval Support Activity-Panama City, and one was arrested by Navy security, according to the Bay County Sheriff’s Office.

Construction site superintendent Steven R. Fudge with McMinnville, Tenn.-based Cambridge Constructors was cited for employing undocumented workers, which carries a $500 fine, authorities said.

John Elliot, project manager for Cambridge, had no comment Monday. He referred all questions about the raid to his attorney — but refused to name the attorney.



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