US immigration authorities have raided a massive Hyundai factory in Georgia, leading to the arrest of 475 people, according to one of the agencies involved in the operation.
The 3,000-acre site, which was built by the Korean automobile manufacturer to make electric vehicles, had been operational for a year.
The Department of Homeland Security told the BBC that agents executed a search warrant due to allegations of “unlawful employment practices and other serious federal crimes”.
Most of those detained were Korean nationals, authorities said.The South Korean foreign ministry expressed concern that the raid may be an “unjust infringement” of their rights.
Hyundai Motor Company said it was aware of the incident at the HL-GA Battery Company construction site and was “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,” it said in statement. “We prioritize the safety and well-being of everyone working at the site.”
At a press conference on Friday, an official with the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said “there was a majority of Korean nationals from the 475” people detained. They were were being held at a facility in Folkston, Georgia, until the agency decided where to move them next.
“This in fact was the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of homeland security investigations,” Special Agent Steve Schrank said.
South Korea’s foreign ministry said it was dispatching diplomats to the site in response to the raid and that the government had contacted the US embassy in Seoul to urge them “to exercise extreme caution” when it came to Korean citizens’ rights.
“The economic activities of Korean investment companies and the rights and interests of Korean citizens must not be unfairly infringed upon during US law enforcement operations,” the foreign ministry statement said.
ICE officials said the operation was the result of a multi-month criminal investigation.
Videos on social media show agents lining workers up, telling them they have a warrant to search the facility. The agents can also be seen talking to some of the workers in the videos.
South Korean companies have promised to invest billions of dollars in key US industries in the coming years, partly as a way to avoid tariffs.
The state’s governor, Republican Brian Kemp, had touted Hyundai’s new electric vehicle operation as the biggest economic development project in the state’s history, employing 1,200 people.
The search by federal agencies had also shut down construction on an adjacent battery plant, CBS News reports.
President Trump campaigned for his second term in office on the back of a pledge to carry out mass deportations of undocumented immigrants although he said the priority would be those who committed crimes.
