WASHINGTON, Dec 13: A US immigration sweep of meat plants in six states resulted in nearly 1,300 arrests of illegal immigrants, federal officials said on Wednesday. The sweep, temporarily shutting down the Swift & Co facilities, was part of a 10-month investigation into identity theft involving illegal immigrants.
Swift, based in Greeley, Colorado, is privately held and is a major US producer of beef and pork, with nine billion dollars in annual sales. The plants are in Colorado, Nebraska, Texas, Utah, Iowa and Minnesota.
The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement put the number of arrests at 1,282.—Reuters
