Federal and immigration agents arrested 475 people while executing a judicial search warrant at a Hyundai facility in Georgia as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into allegations of unlawful employment practices.
Everyone arrested, most of them South Korean nationals, were “illegally present in the United States or in violation of their presence in the United States, working unlawfully,” said Steven Schrank, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia, in a press conference Friday morning.
This is the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of Homeland Security Investigations, Schrank said, adding it “underscores our commitment to jobs for Georgians and Americans.”
A sea of agents from HSI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal agencies showed up Thursday to a construction site in the town of Ellabell, where South Korean companies Hyundai and LG Energy Solution are jointly building a new battery plant next to their manufacturing facility for electric vehicles.
Videos on social media showed agents lining up hundreds of workers at the construction site. Schrank said they questioned everyone about their immigration status, reviewing their documents and conducting background checks.
“This was not a immigration operation where agents went into the premises, rounded up folks and put them on buses. This has been a multimonth criminal investigation,” Schranck said.
No criminal charges in connection to the ongoing investigation have been filed as of Friday morning.
The South Korean government responded to the detentions of many of their nationals in a statement earlier on Friday.
“In the course of U.S. law enforcement, the economic activities of our investment firms and the rights and interests of our nationals must not be unjustly infringed upon,” said Lee Jae-woong, a spokesperson for South Korea’s foreign ministry. “We conveyed our concern and regret to the U.S. Embassy today and urged them to take special care to ensure that the legitimate rights and interests of our nationals are not violated.”
Jae-woong added that an on-site task force will be established in Georgia with the help of the South Korean consulate in Atlanta.
A Hyundai spokesperson told NBC News in a statement Friday that the company is “closely monitoring the situation and working to understand the specific circumstances.”
“As of today, it is our understanding that none of those detained is directly employed by Hyundai Motor Company. We prioritize the safety and well-being of everyone working at the site and comply with all laws and regulations wherever we operate,” the statement reads.
According to Schrank, the workers arrested at the construction site were employed by a network of various contractors and subcontractors, which investigators are looking into.
They all remain in ICE custody after most of them were brought to the Folkston immigration processing center in Georgia following their arrests, Shrank said.
