Thread: Illegal Immigrant Raid in Scranton

Illegal Immigrant Raid in Scranton

Thursday, October 25, UPDATED: 5:12 p.m.
By Josh Brogadir

Dozens of suspected illegal immigrants were taken into custody by federal agents Thursday morning during a raid in Scranton.

Agents went to a company that makes equipment for the military, rounding up about one-third of the people there and taking them into custody.

Employees said they heard a knock at the door at North American Manufacturing, stopping production. The company makes field and ammunition packs and cots for the U.S. military.

Police blocked the street and federal agents went in about 8:15 a.m. Company officials estimate they took out about 40 of their 120 first-shift workers.

Antwan Garner is an American citizen. He was inside putting together a military cot when it all happened.

"They asked for all the American citizens to go to one side of the room and all the immigrants to the other side, and they did a little test looking at people working. A lot of things went down today. This was crazy," Garner said.


Many suspected illegal immigrants were led out by Immigration and Customs enforcement agents.

Several family members and friends watched as the workers were led into a waiting bus and van. George Guevara's mother was not taken away but his cousins were.

"They're not criminals you know, just working. Me, I've been here for seven years, you know. I'm legal in this country but either way, they look at us the same way, you know, whether we're legal or not legal," Guevara said.

North American Manufacturing officials said some of the employees taken into custody were long-time workers. They said they were shocked to see immigration agents arrive and said they never expected anything like this,
especially because the company has checked the identification and social security cards of all of their 135 workers.

The immigration office in Washington D.C. has not commented about the number of arrests or about any charges.

The plant manager at North American Manufacturing Plant said he has heard from his employees that all the women who were taken into custody have been released but the men were taken on a bus to the immigration office in Philadelphia.

At this point, there is no word if they are coming back.

http://www.wnep.com/Global/story.asp?S= ... =menu158_2

WHY WERE THEY RELEASED?????????????????????????????????????

What a waste of tax payer money ! Arrest Illegals then let them go.Why bother.......

Originally Posted by grandmasmad

WHY WERE THEY RELEASED?????????????????????????????????????

The poor things probably cried about being separated from their anchor babies and we know how the media will portray mean old ICE
Does anyone else wonder why we NEVER hear any of the men(caught in raids) crying over the separation from their families?

Rawhide!

But Chertoff said they ended 'catch and release.'

Many immigrants released
BY GRETCHEN M. WINTERMANTEL
STAFF WRITER
10/27/2007

More than half of the 53 people taken into custody Thursday at a Scranton manufacturing plant were released on humanitarian grounds.

Medical issues and child-care needs are things the U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement Agency would take into consideration, spokeswoman Ernestine Fobbs said.

Ms. Fobbs said the released workers were mostly female, but at least one male was let go because of child-care issues.

The remaining 22 people are still in custody. Of the 53 taken into custody, 35 were female and 18 male. There were 38 from Mexico, 12 from Honduras and three from Uruguay. The breakdown of ethnicity and gender of those released was not available, Ms. Fobbs said.

Meanwhile, North American Manufacturing was back in business on Friday.

Plant manager Joseph Wechsler said company officials had not heard from ICE on the status of their employees. The plant will be hiring employees to fill the now-vacant assembler spots, he added.

While Ms. Fobbs could not confirm where the people were as of Friday or where they would be going, they will remain in custody, she said, until they have a removal hearing to determine what will happen to them.

Some of the families have begun to reach out for help.

Leandra Barbuti-Ayala, Hispanic outreach supervisor for Catholic Social Services, said she’d been visited by relatives on behalf of people taken into custody. She had also gotten some phone calls on Thursday and Friday.

“They know they can come to us,â€