Federal agents arrested nearly 300 people Wednesday in raids at Pilgrim's Pride chicken plants in five states, the latest crackdown on illegal immigrant labor at the nation's poultry producers. In separate sweeps, authorities also arrested dozens of workers at a doughnut factory in Houston and the operators of a chain of Mexican restaurants in upstate New York. The arrests at Pittsburg, Texas-based Pilgrim's Pride Corp., the nation's largest chicken producer, included charges of identity theft, document fraud or immigration violations. The company went to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents with information about identity theft at an Arkansas plant, said Ray Atkinson, a company spokesman.
See "Nearly 300 arrested in immigration raids at poultry plants in 5 states; more arrests elsewhere", Anabelle Garay, Minneapolis Star Tribune, April 15, 2008