69 Immigrant Workers Held in Baltimore Area Raids

Officials said the workers detained yesterday were being held and processed in Baltimore. They said some would be sent to detention centers in Maryland and Pennsylvania, except for any who are released on humanitarian grounds.

One detained woman, who was eight months pregnant and said she was not feeling well, was taken to a hospital during a raid, said ICE spokeswoman Jamie Zuieback.

Many of the workers were laborers such as offloaders and packagers. Some of the women worked labeling and packaging clothes, their relatives said. Officials said the detainees had come from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Kenya, Cameroon and Ghana.

In addition to the Jones firm, officials said the eight raided facilities were operated by Under Armour and Dixie Printing and Packaging Corp., in Anne Arundel County; Tessco Technologies and BP Castrol, in Baltimore County; and Pritchard Brown, C. Steinweg, Baltimore Metal and Commodities, and Beacon Stevedoring, all in Baltimore.

Kevin Haley, general counsel for Under Armour, told the Associated Press that the company was unaware the employees were illegal immigrants. He said the firm was "cooperating fully with law enforcement" and had been told it was not a target of the government's investigation.

"At Under Armour, we are patriots first and last and we're fully committed to compliance with all laws and regulations," Haley said. "We're furious that apparently one of the temp agencies we use was not so committed or gave the appearance of being not so committed."

Dinkins said the ICE inquiry was launched in August after investigators received an anonymous tip that illegal immigrants were working at the Port of Baltimore. He said ICE was concerned because the facilities were bonded warehouses. Such facilities are allowed to store incoming and outgoing cargo before it is examined by customs agents, during which time it is "very susceptible to substitutions and tampering," he said.

Efforts to contact Jones officials were unsuccessful, and signs in English and Spanish were taped inside the firm's front window saying it was closed for the day.

Staff writer Mary Otto contributed to this report.