OAN Staff Blake Wolf
12:25 PM – Friday, September 5, 2025
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted an immigration enforcement operation at Hyundai’s Metaplant America in Georgia. The raid resulted in the detainment of 475 illegal aliens, marking it as the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of Homeland Security Investigations.
The facility, located in Ellabell, Georgia, in Bryan County, was raided “as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into allegations of unlawful employment practices and other serious federal crimes,” according to a DHS statement.
The majority of the individuals apprehended were Korean nationals who either crossed the border illegally or overstayed their visas, according to Steven Schrank, a DHS Investigations special agent.
“This in fact was the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of Homeland Security Investigations,” Schrank stated.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia stated that numerous individuals attempted to flee during the raid, including a few who “ran into a sewage pond located on the premises.”
“Agents used a boat to fish them out of the water. One of the individuals swam under the boat and tried to flip it over to no avail. These people were captured and identified as illegal workers,” the Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia added.
The White House also later issued a response to the historic raid, explicitly highlighting that “any foreign workers brought in for specific projects must enter the United States legally and with proper work authorizations.”
However, some say that the operation could potentially create more tension between Washington, D.C., and Seoul, as South Korea has pledged $150 billion in U.S. investments — which includes a $26 billion investment from Hyundai Motor.
The battery factory represents part of Hyundai’s $12.6 billion in investments in Georgia, which also includes a newly opened car factory.
In response to the raid, Hyundai released a statement announcing that it is “closely monitoring the situation,” while claiming that the detained individuals in question had worked for several contractors, rather than being “directly employed by Hyundai Motor Company.”
Additionally, South Korea’s foreign ministry issued a statement in response as well, sharing its “concerns and regret” over the immigration raid.
“The economic activities of our companies investing in the U.S. and the rights and interests of our nationals must not be unfairly violated,” stated a spokesperson for the South Korean foreign ministry.
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