146 Illegal Aliens Arrested in Ohio Meatpacking Raid, 13 Charged for Fake IDs

After nearly 150 suspected illegal aliens were arrested at an Ohio meatpacking plant, 13 illegal aliens have been charged with using fraudulent identities to appear as though they were working in the United States legally.

In June, 146 suspected illegal aliens — primarily from Guatemala — were arrested at the Fresh Mark meatpacking plant in Salem and Massillon, Ohio in one of the largest worksite Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids of the year.

Since the ICE raid, 13 illegal aliens have now been hit with federal charges for allegedly using fake identities to gain employment at Fresh Mark, Cleveland.com reports.

All but two of the 13 illegal aliens charged are from Guatemala. The other two illegal aliens are from Mexico.

A lawsuit filed in 2001 against Fresh Mark accused the meat processor of knowingly hiring illegal aliens for decades and even having employees forge work documents for illegal aliens so they could appear as though they were working legally in the U.S.

Since 2011, Fresh Mark has had two Guatemalan nationals die on the job at the meatpacking plant. One of those Guatemalans, an illegal alien, died in December of last year at the plant.

There have yet to be any charges filed against Fresh Mark for hiring the illegal alien workers, though investigators say the case is still pending and has not been concluded.