Overview

• ICE detained 76 plant workers on June 10 during an investigation into identity fraud and the use of stolen identities to bypass hiring checks.
• Lincoln County Sheriff Jerome Kramer said none of the detainees are considered violent offenders and many may be able to correct their work status and reunite with families or employers.
• Company president Chad Hartmann said his team had relied on the federal E-Verify system but was deceived by employees using fraudulent identities.
• News reports indicate one worker threatened federal agents with box cutters while hiding in a makeshift barricade and others required medical attention after concealing themselves in walk-in freezers.
• Within two days of the raid, the facility’s waiting room was filled with legal applicants, offering a path to restore the plant’s operations more quickly.