37 people arrested in large-scale immigration raid at Bellingham business

A large-scale immigration raid at Mt. Baker Roofing in Whatcom County resulted in the arrest of 37 individuals, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the U.S. Border Patrol.

The raid, conducted on Wednesday, has sparked mixed reactions among local residents.

An ICE spokesperson stated that the individuals arrested were in the country illegally and were allegedly working without legal authorization. The spokesperson added that those arrested had lied about their immigration status and submitted false documents to secure employment at the roofing company.
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Liz Darrow, participatory democracy coordinator for Community to Community Development, an organization advocating for immigrant worker rights, expressed concern over the increased ICE activity in Whatcom and Skagit counties.

"ICE is really ramping up in Whatcom and Skagit county, especially, and that is very concerning to us," Darrow said.

Darrow said the raid is one of the largest she has witnessed and is causing fear within the community.

"We’re seeing the effect is that people don’t want to go to school, they don’t want to go to work. That has a ripple effect on everybody in the community, it’s problematic even for immigrants who have documentation or seeking asylum," Darrow said.

ICE officials described the operation as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into Mt. Baker Roofing and confirmed they had a federal search warrant. KOMO News has reached out to the company for comment, but has not yet received a response.

The raid has elicited varied responses from residents. Jaymme Hanrahan expressed disbelief, saying, "I thought we were supposed to be a free country. We all came here at some point, whether through legal or non-legal." In contrast, resident Randy Schout supported the raid, stating, "If people are here with expired visas and stuff, then they need to go back home."

Immigration advocates criticized the raid's approach. "It’s targeted, it’s aggressive, it’s meant to instill fear. If they want to resolve any kind of workplace issues, this is not the way to be doing it," they said.

KOMO News has reached out to ICE for more information regarding where those who were arrested were transferred to and we are waiting to hear back.

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Karina Vargas

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