30-05-2025
Federal immigration agents raid New Orleans construction site: report
Workers with the M.R. Pittman Group are detained Tuesday, May 27, 2025, at the Mirabeau Water Gardens construction site in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans. (Photo courtesy WVUE-TV Fox 8)
NEW ORLEANS – Only a handful of construction workers were present at the Mirabeau Water Garden construction site in Gentilly, just 24 hours after federal immigration agents raided the area and placed multiple workers in handcuffs, WVUE-TV Fox 8 reported.
The raid began around 7:15 a.m. Tuesday, when several vehicles arrived at the site and a helicopter hovered overhead. A worker who spoke with Fox 8 anonymously said crews with the M.R. Pittman Group were just starting their day.
'They had the whole site surrounded on all sides,' the worker said. 'They were grabbing everyone at the work site.'
According to the worker, nearly every person on-site was questioned and asked to provide proof of residency or a work permit, including him. He said he is living and working in Louisiana on a U visa, a non-immigrant visa that allows certain victims of crime and their families to live and work in the U.S. for a limited time while they apply for permanent residency.
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'They came to me and put me under arrest and demanded my documents,' he said. 'I just had to show them my work permit and my driver's license, and they didn't arrest me.'
Despite multiple media requests to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), officials have not disclosed the number of people detained, the number of arrests, the reasons for the arrests, or the identities of those taken into custody.
'I would say it was around 12 to 15 people who were actually arrested,' the worker said.
Mayra Pineda, with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana, expressed concern that the arrests could cause fear among Hispanic laborers.
'This is an impact that will affect everyone,' Pineda said. 'At this point there is general panic, not only for Hispanic businesses but for businesses in general that employ Hispanics.'
M.R. Pittman has not commented on how the arrests might affect the $30 million federally funded drainage project. The company has also not stated how many of its workers were detained or arrested by ICE.
from Fox 8 reporter Andrés Fuentes.
