SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Federal agents walked into a massive Hyundai and LG Energy Solutions construction site yesterday and detained nearly 500 people on suspected immigration offenses. The site, near Savannah, Georgia, is the home of a future electric vehicle battery plant. On Instagram, video posted by an account with the name Alex Morales showed a group of people listening to a masked man who identifies himself as part of Homeland Security.
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UNIDENTIFIED DHS OFFICER: We need construction to cease immediately. We need all work to end on the site right now.
DETROW: Homeland Security Investigations says this was the largest single-site operation they have ever carried out. NPR's Camila Domonoske covers cars for NPR and joins us now. Hey there.
CAMILA DOMONOSKE, BYLINE: Hi.
DETROW: What do we know about this workplace raid so far?
DOMONOSKE: Yeah. So Homeland Security Investigations, which is the branch of ICE that carries out this kind of workplace raid, they say that they detained 475 people, most of them South Korean. Hyundai and LG Energy Solutions - both of those companies are headquartered in South Korea. Here's Special Agent Steven Schrank speaking at a press conference.
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STEVEN SCHRANK: Some that illegally crossed the border into the United States, some that came in through visa waiver and were prohibited from working, some that had visas and overstayed their visas.
DETROW: So who was employing the people who were detained?
DOMONOSKE: It's a good question. You know, in a project like this, there are really complicated webs of subcontractors and subcontractors to subcontractors. Hyundai says that it believes that nobody detained was directly employed by Hyundai Motor Company. LG Energy Solutions hasn't responded to NPR's requests for comment.
That Homeland Security official said that this raid was tied to, quote, "allegations of unlawful employment practices and serious federal crimes," end quote. He did not provide more details on that, and there are no charges filed in this case right now. Officials say this is an ongoing investigation. It would be unusual if charges are eventually filed because immigration raids like this, where workers are detained - they don't often end with criminal charges for employers.
DETROW: Tell us more about where this raid happened.
DOMONOSKE: It's on this huge campus of buildings near Savannah, Georgia, that also includes a large factory where Hyundai is right now building electric vehicles. That factory was not directly affected by the raid. Production of vehicles didn't actually stop. But the battery plant that's under construction nearby, which is where the raid actually happened - it's an important part of the long-term plans for this facility 'cause the goal is to build not just electric vehicles, but the whole supply chain for these vehicles here in the U.S.
And that's important not just to Hyundai, but actually to the United States more broadly in this effort to try to compete with China over the future of electric vehicles. So Hyundai is investing some $26 billion in moving manufacturing to the U.S., including this project. It's a big deal for the company and for Georgia. The state's called it the largest economic development project in state history.
DETROW: And I understand you just heard back from Hyundai. What did they say?
DOMONOSKE: They said they're going to conduct an investigation into suppliers and their subcontractors to make sure they are all following employment law and other laws and regulations. Meanwhile, Congressman Buddy Carter, who represents the area surrounding the plant, posted on X that he applauded the Trump administration for taking bold action. And the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs says it voiced concerns to the United States about respecting South Korean economic activity and citizens.
DETROW: That is NPR's Camila Domonoske. Thank you so much.
DOMONOSKE: Thank you.
DETROW: Sam Gringlas of member station WABE contributed to that report as well. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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