Thread: ICE raids plant in Laurel, Mississippi

ICEfan I'm very impressed. So glad you had the presence of mind to capture this on film and photo. I'm sending it to my local anti-illegal immigration group. They will be very pleased.

Yes, front line blog about what you saw would be great. Let's refute the lies that the OBL's put out.

Flowers for the newbie:

Latest article has the number of arrests at 350. 50 were elgible to be released on their own recognizance.

Jeeze, only 350? That is hard to believe. There are many, many more than that. Thanks for the welcome too. I'll give ya'll the news as I hear it.

Howard raid was result of union tip
By EMMA JAMES • American Staff Writer • August 25, 2008

Barbara Gonzalez, spokeswoman for ICE, said the raid was executed because of a tip from a Howard Industries union member.

Employees are being interviewed, and if they are found in violation of U.S. immigration laws, they will be moved to a facility for processing, Gonzalez said.

ICE raids plant in Laurel, Mississippi

Federal immigration agents arrested some 350 suspected undocumented workers in a raid on a Mississippi electrical equipment plant Monday, authorities announced, hours after sealing all entrances amid reports their sweep had idled normal operations.

Barbara Gonzalez, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman, said the target of the operation was Howard Industries Inc. in Laurel, a town of about 18,000 people located about 85 miles southeast of Jackson.

The company produces dozens of products ranging from electrical transformers to medical supplies, according to the company's Web site.

"This is a targeted enforcement operation that is part of an ongoing ICE investigation that has revealed that illegal aliens are employed at Howard Industries," Gonzalez said, adding late Monday that agents were still interviewing plant workers.

She declined to say how many federal agents were involved in the raid, but said they acted on a tip provided by a union worker.

Another agency spokesman, Brandon Montgomery, told The Associated Press outside the plant Monday afternoon that agents were talking with everyone who worked at the sprawling plant to determine their residency status.

He said that 50 of those suspected of being illegal workers were eligible for some form of "alternative to detention" — a concession that could allow them to be placed on a monitoring device while awaiting a caseworker for "humanitarian reasons" such as children in their care.

All plant entrances were blocked, with tents set up at some ICE checkpoints to keep agents out of a steady rain. Motorists traveling on roads behind the plant were stopped by officers in unmarked vehicles and told to leave.

People leaving the plant told The Hattiesburg American newspaper that so many illegal immigrants were arrested that operations were shut down. It wasn't clear how many workers the plant employed.

A recording at Howard Industries plant on Monday said the telephone switchboard was closed.

Billy Howard, the company's chief executive officer, did not immediately respond to a message left by The AP. A man who answered a phone call at the company's security station said reporters would have to call back Tuesday.

Howard Industries was founded in the 1960s. In 2002, state lawmakers approved a $31.5 million, taxpayer-backed incentive plan aimed at helping to expand its operations.

The raid is one of several nationwide in recent years.

On May 12, federal immigration officials swept into Agriprocessors, the nation's largest kosher meatpacking plant, in Iowa. Nearly 400 workers were detained and dozens of fraudulent permanent resident alien cards were seized from the plant's human resources department, court records showed.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jO9W ... gD92PHREG0

Immigrants' rights group knew ICE raid coming
August 25, 2008


An immigrants' rights group based in Jackson knew for the last eight or nine days that more U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials were in the state.


“We saw a growing presecne for ICE agents in the area. It was apparant they were going after somebody,â€

WELCOME ICEFAN! Grea pictures.

350 suspected illegal workers arrested in Miss. plant raid

Miss. (AP) — Federal immigration agents arrested some 350 suspected undocumented workers in a raid on a Mississippi electrical equipment plant Monday, authorities announced, hours after sealing all entrances amid reports their sweep had idled normal operations.
Barbara Gonzalez, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman, confirmed the arrests in the raid that she said targeted Howard Industries Inc. of Laurel. Authorities said more people could be arrested.

The company produces dozens of products ranging from electrical transformers to medical supplies, according to the company's website.

"This is a targeted enforcement operation that is part of an ongoing ICE investigation that has revealed that illegal aliens are employed at Howard Industries," Gonzalez said, adding late Monday that agents were still interviewing plant workers.

She declined to say how many federal agents were involved in the raid, but said they acted on a tip provided by a union worker.

Another agency spokesman, Brandon Montgomery, told The Associated Press outside the plant Monday afternoon that agents were talking with everyone who worked at the sprawling plant to determine their residency status.

He said that 50 of those suspected of being illegal workers were eligible for some form of "alternative to detention" — a concession that could allow them to be placed on a monitoring device while awaiting a caseworker for "humanitarian reasons" such as children in their care.

All plant entrances were blocked, with tents set up at some ICE checkpoints to keep agents out of a steady rain. Motorists traveling on roads behind the plant were stopped by officers in unmarked vehicles and told to leave.

People leaving the plant told The Hattiesburg American newspaper that so many illegal immigrants were arrested that operations were shut down. It wasn't clear how many workers the plant employed.

A recording at Howard Industries plant on Monday said the telephone switchboard was closed.

Billy Howard, the company's chief executive officer, did not immediately respond to a message left by The AP. A man who answered a phone call at the company's security station said reporters would have to call back Tuesday.

Howard Industries was founded in the 1960s. In 2002, state lawmakers approved a $31.5 million, taxpayer-backed incentive plan aimed at helping to expand its operations.

The raid is one of several nationwide in recent years.

On May 12, federal immigration officials swept into Agriprocessors, the nation's largest kosher meatpacking plant, in Iowa. Nearly 400 workers were detained and dozens of fraudulent permanent resident alien cards were seized from the plant's human resources department, court records showed

http://www.capsweb.org/content.php?id=450&menu_id=14

I just love hearing about a new raid on some neocon owned facility. It just brightens up my whole day. Of course, as usual they will only get 1/3 of the workers there and of course the owners are republican party contributors and will not be prosecuted, but at least it keeps the fear factor alive within the IA community and its a few less of them we have to look at on a daily basis.

350 ?! - There goes another sanctuary town !

Absolutely amazing... My town has had several Operation Return to Sender raids and taken a small amount of people but nothing like this.

Icefan, it must have been amazing to have been on the front line.

When we had our raids our local activist posted signs around town warning the IA's that the Migra was in town...

Yes, keep us posted.

I was away from my computer all day today -can't believe what I missed.