Immigration authorities raided at least one Omaha meat production plant Tuesday morning, inspiring some small protests, but details about how many workers were affected weren’t immediately clear.
Omaha police and the Douglas County sheriff said immigration officials had warned them about their plans, and their departments helped block off traffic around the neighborhood where many food production plants are located while U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers worked.
Meatpacking plants rely heavily on immigrant workers who are willing to do the physically demanding work. The industry has not yet been the focus of President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement efforts, but the administration has been intensifying its efforts in recent weeks. Trump called out the National Guard this week to respond to ongoing protests in Los Angeles over his immigration policies.
In Omaha, a small group of people came out to protest the raids, and some of them even jumped on the front bumper of a vehicle to try to stop officers in one location while others threw rocks at officials’ vehicles as a white bus carrying workers pulled away from a plant.
Glenn Valley Foods officials didn’t immediately respond to an inquiry from The Associated Press, but WOWT reported that CEO and owner Gary Rohwer said he wasn’t made aware of the operation ahead of time and that there was no warrant.
“Of course not. It’s a raid,” said Rohwer, whose company makes the Gary’s QuickSteak brand of ready-to-grill steak.
Federal agents entered the plant around 9 a.m. Tuesday with a list of 97 people they wanted to screen, Rohwer said. He said the company regularly checks the immigration status of employees with the federal E-Verify database.
ICE officials didn’t immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press, but the agency confirmed the raid at Glenn Valley Foods to the Omaha World-Herald.
“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and federal law enforcement partners, executed a federal search warrant at Glenn Valley Foods, today, based on an ongoing criminal investigation into the large-scale employment of aliens without authorization to work in the United States,” ICE said in a statement.
“The worksite enforcement operation is likely the largest to take place in Nebraska since the start of the current presidential administration, which has prioritized immigration enforcement efforts and strengthened focus on border security.”
The raid prompted one Douglas County Commissioner to walk out in the middle of a meeting Tuesday to head down to the area he represents in southeast Omaha where the plants are located. Commissioner Roger Garcia and City Councilman Ron Hug both expressed concern about the impact on families.
“These actions are deeply harmful to the South Omaha community,” Hug said in a statement. “Not only are they unjust and disruptive, but they also directly undermine the economic stability and growth of District 4 and the broader community.”
Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson said his agency is “not privy to the exact nature of the ICE operation” but that his agency is there to assist with assuring “peace and safety” of everyone in the area. Asked when he learned of the operation, he said his department received “respectful and ample notification.” He says he got the notification about a week ago.
