Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested more than 280 workers at a Texas technology company in what the agency described as the largest workplace raid in a decade.
CVE Technology Group allegedly hired undocumented workers knowing they didn’t have the authorization to work in the U.S., ICE officials said in a statement.
Agents with ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations unit began looking into the company after the agency received tips CVE employees were using fraudulent documents.
(MORE: US Customs and Border Protection detain 9-year-old US citizen for 32 hours without her parents at border)“Businesses that knowingly hire illegal aliens create an unfair advantage over their competing businesses,” said Katrina Berger, a special agent with HSI in Dallas. “In addition, they take jobs away from U.S. citizens and legal residents, and they create an atmosphere poised for exploiting their illegal workforce.”
Immigration authorities regularly conduct audits of I-9 forms, the documents companies use to prove their employees are citizens or have other authorization to work.
ICE has been under increased scrutiny as the Trump administration has attempted to ramp up immigration enforcement policies.
(MORE:US to stop detaining some migrant families apprehended at border)However, the number of arrests made by ICE agents dropped by more than 10 percent in the second half of 2018. When the data was made public last month, senior ICE officials said the agency has been forced to divert resources to address the influx of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Detention centers along the southern border have been overwhelmed to the point that Customs and Border Protection agents have started immediately releasing migrant families with notices to appear in court.