(OMAHA, NE) -- The recent worksite immigration raid at Glenn Valley Foods in Omaha was the culmination of a three-month investigation into a large-scale identity theft scheme, according to the Homeland Security agent who led the operation.
Agent Elhrick Cerdan with Homeland Security Investigations told NBC News that federal authorities accuse the workers of using stolen identities from over 100 U.S. citizens, which caused some victims to lose federal benefits.
That view is challenged by advocates for the workers. Anne Wurth, a legal director for the Center for Immigrant Refugee and Advancement, called the workers “honest, hardworking individuals" who are also victims of a broken immigration system.
Seven people have been criminally charged in connection with the raid, while dozens of others remain in immigration custody.
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