The Department of Homeland Security says ICE made multiple arrests on Saturday in Saginaw Township. A video posted online shows several men in high-visibility vests near a work site sitting on the ground in handcuffs being detained by ICE officers.
In a statement to the media, ICE said nine people were arrested and “all of the illegal aliens arrested have or will receive full due process.” The agency added that they will remain in ICE custody.
The identity and country of origin of the workers is not yet clear. Who they were working for is also still unknown. A van at the work site captured in the video carried the logo of Omni Fiber.
Omni Fiber is an Ohio-based internet service provider. They did not respond to a request for comment.
The arrests sparked protests against ICE Monday evening in the Saginaw Township neighborhood where the arrests took place. Protesters left signs in support of the workers at the abandoned work site, according to local media reports.
Township Supervisor Gary Fandrich told WCMU that the township “was not notified prior to DHS arriving" and that the township was “not privy to any other information in this matter.”
Lieutenant Andy Myers with the Saginaw Township Police Department said his agency was not involved in the arrests, and this was the first he had heard of ICE in the township.
In nearby Saginaw, local leadership decried the arrests and called for more transparency on the incident.
“I've contacted township officials, I left messages with the potential contractor,” said Councilwoman Carly Hammond at Monday's city council meeting.
“At this time, it is my understanding that the names of the people who were detained, nobody knows who they are. There's no information.”
Priscilla Garcia, another member of the Saginaw city council, also spoke against the arrests at the meeting.
“It’s just heartbreaking,” she said. “And I'm just praying for those families because I don’t even know what they're going through.”
