by Neetu Chandak
Thirteen illegal immigrants were indicted for immigration-related offenses Wednesday as a result of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arresting more than 100 workers at a Ohio food company in June.
The 13 were indicted on charges of providing false statements of citizenship and presenting fake forms of identification, like driver’s licenses and social security cards, according to Cleveland.com on Thursday. The individuals allegedly provided false information to be eligible for employment opportunities in the U.S.
Eleven were from Guatemala and two were from Mexico with ages ranging between 18 and 46 years old, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio reported Thursday.
ICE arrested 146 people at Fresh Mark, a meat supplier, in the Salem and Massillon locations, according to Cleveland.com. Those arrested primarily originated from Guatemala and were arrested because authorities believed them to be in the U.S. illegally.
Over “80 were detained for immigration proceedings and about 40 remain in custody, according to an ICE spokeswoman,” reported The Vindicator.
The ICE spokeswoman added that many of the detainees were released for health and family concerns while volunteers said some entered the U.S. legally, but did not have proper documentation at the time of arrest, according to The Vindicator.
The counties affected were Columbiana and Stark counties. The state of Ohio had 9,507 pending cases in immigration court as of Friday, according to Syracuse University’s Transaction Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) data.
Guatemalans, additionally, made up 17 percent of immigration court proceedings from October 2015 to February 2016, another TRAC report said. Mexicans made up a quarter of immigration proceedings while El Salvadorians ranked second with 23 percent.
Fresh Mark and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Northern Ohio did not immediately respond to The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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Neetu Chandak is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation. Follow Neetu on Twitter.
