ICE detains 37 workers at Bellingham roofing company

Multiple federal law enforcement agencies detained 37 workers at Mt. Baker Roofing in Bellingham during the morning of April 2.

Federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) executed a federal search warrant at the roofing company headquarters at 928 Thomas Road, “based on an ongoing investigation into the unlawful employment of aliens without legal work authorization in violation of federal law,” according to a statement from ICE spokesperson David Yost.

“As a result of the operation, 37 aliens who had fraudulently represented their immigration status and submitted fraudulent documents and/or information to seek employment were administratively arrested,” Yost wrote.

This comes after labor activist Alfredo “Lelo” Juarez Zeferino, along with several other farmworkers, was detained by ICE on March 25, sparking protests. He is being held in the privately-run Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma awaiting trial for a 2018 deportation order, according to Yost.