Reno, Nevada — On September 26, as part of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigation into illegal immigration, raided 11 McDonald's restaurants in northern Nevada and made at dozen of arrests.
Federal agents made at least 56 arrests in Reno area alone. One of the restaurants raided was a franchise corporate headquarters.
Richard Rocha an agency representative said, "They are people suspected of being in the country illegally. As far as I know, they were all McDonald's employees," he told The Associated Press.
The investigation began with an identity theft complaint five months ago, Rocha said. Local law enforcement agency then gave ICE information that illegal immigrants were working at specific McDonald's restaurants, he said.
Luther Mack, insisted that his businesses requires employees to provide documentation and "as an employer, I do not knowingly hire or employ undocumented or unauthorized workers," Mack said. After arrested were made at one of his many restaurants during the raids.
Lisa Howard, a spokeswoman for McDonald's Corp. based in Oak Brook, Illinois had no comments on the arrests. "This is a local situation with a local operator," she stated.
The raids angered local Latino leaders and Reno’s Mayor Bob Cashell. Who joined local Hispanic leaders and members of the American Civil Liberties Union at a news conference in front of the federal courthouse later that day.
Many people in the community didn’t approve of ICE new methods of catching illegal immigrants and felt theirs a better way to do things than going to a place where their just trying to make an honest living.
Cashell went on to say that he would contact Nevada's congressional delegation and ask the city council to look into the raids.
One issue that has risen from ICE raids in recent months is the children of the immigrants. Who will care for them and what will happen to them? In this case, ICE been working with Washoe County social services to help provide care for children, Rocha said.
Social service advocates say arrests are creating humanitarian crisis, with some children left with no one to care for them.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,298396,00.html
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