Thread: San Diego ICE agents raid downtown apartment

ICE agents raid downtown apartment

Posted: Oct 11, 2012 12:39 PM PDT<em class="wnDate">Thursday, October 11, 2012 3:39 PM EST</em>Updated: Oct 11, 2012 12:55 PM PDT<em class="wnDate">Thursday, October 11, 2012 3:55 PM EST</em>Video Report By Shannon Handy, Reporter




SAN DIEGO (CBS - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made arrests Thursday morning during a raid on a downtown apartment building.

Dozens of agents stormed the 900 F Street Apartments at about 6 a.m. Thursday. Officials would not say how many people were arrested, or why the arrests were made. News 8 is working to find out further details, and will update this story as we learn more.

ICE agents raid downtown apartment - San Diego, California News Station - KFMB Channel 8 - cbs8.com

From the video it appears at least two of those arrested were illegal aliens from Turkey who were working in San Diego as taxi cab drivers.

Immigration sting hits San Diego 'pedicab' drivers

The Associated Press

Last modified: 2012-10-11T19:06:02Z
Published: Thursday, Oct. 11, 2012 - 12:05 pm

SAN DIEGO -- U.S. authorities say nearly 40 bicycle cab drivers have been arrested on immigration violations in downtown San Diego.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Lauren Mack said Thursday's arrests include many with student visas that didn't allow them to work. They are mostly from Turkey but also Russia, the Ukraine, Poland, Brazil and Pakistan.

They are being ordered to leave the country within a month.

In August, 24 Turkish nationals were arrested on immigration violations after ICE determined they were operating "pedicabs" illegally in downtown San Diego. The three-wheel bicycle cabs go short distances for fares.

Immigration sting hits San Diego 'pedicab' drivers - AP State Wire News - The Sacramento Bee

Originally Posted by HAPPY2BME

From the video it appears at least two of those arrested were illegal aliens from Turkey who were working in San Diego as taxi cab drivers.

Most of them are here legally on a student visa.
What they are doing illegally is working without a work permit.
They aren't driving taxis.
They are pedaling pedicabs, which is like a rickshaw with a bicycle front-end.

they were operating "pedicabs" illegally in downtown San Diego. The three-wheel bicycle cabs go short distances for fares.

RELATED

Feds eject 24 Turkish pedicab drivers
Started by JohnDoe2, 09-12-2012 11:55 AM

The sweep has exposed what agents suspect is a criminal ring that recruits young foreigners to supply cheap labor to pedicab owners and has raised questions about city pedicab oversight.

Pedicabs such as this one from the U-T files have been the subject of federal scrutiny regarding foreign students brought in to drive them.

Note the use of the word "foreigner" in the headline and the article.
That wouldn't have happened before, but we have a new owner at the UTSD.

Feds arrest dozens of foreigners in pedicab raids

Written b Kristina Davis
12:58 p.m., Oct. 11, 2012

SAN DIEGO — Nearly 40 foreigners living in San Diego on student visas were taken into custody Thursday morning on accusations of illegally working as pedicab drivers, federal immigration officials said.

The raids, which targeted apartments in the East Village, Pacific Beach and East County, are part of an ongoing investigation into the illegal use of foreigners in pedicab operations.

Agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement made initial sweeps in August, arresting 24 Turkish nationals who were here on exchange visitor work visas. All of the arrests have been on administrative — not criminal — immigration violations.

The latest raids involved people primarily in their 20s from Eastern Europe, Russia, Brazil and Turkey, said ICE spokeswoman Lauren Mack. They will be interviewed, then released on orders to leave the United States within 30 days, Mack said. Their visas will also be revoked by the State Department.

Federal law bars foreign visitors from working as pedicab drivers, even with the proper work visas. The law was enacted following a high-profile pedicab crash that left a woman with fatal injuries in downtown San Diego in 2009.

The investigation, led by ICE’s national security unit in San Diego, has exposed what agents suspect is a criminal ring that recruits college-age foreigners as cheap labor for downtown’s pedicab industry.

In many cases, agents discovered the foreigners had lied on their visa applications and supplied false Social Security numbers to the city to get permitted as drivers, Mack said.

Feds arrest dozens of foreigners in pedicab raids | UTSanDiego.com