475 people arrested at Hyundai Motor's Georgia electric car plant for immigration crackdown, mostly Koreans

US authorities have officially confirmed that a large-scale immigration crackdown took place at the construction site of a Hyundai electric vehicle battery factory in Georgia, with 475 people, including South Koreans, being detained.
Among those detained, an estimated 300 are Korean nationals. Stephen Schrank, special agent in charge of Georgia and Alabama for the U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), said:
At a press conference on the 4th local time, he said, "The previous day, 475 people were arrested at a construction site in Elaber, near Savannah, on suspicion of illegal residence or illegal employment." He added, "This crackdown was not carried out at a single location.
"It was the largest operation ever undertaken," he said. "The majority of the 475 people were of Korean nationality," he added, adding, "We don't yet have accurate statistics by nationality, but we will provide the relevant information soon."
Most of those detained are believed to be Korean nationals, and some are employees of subcontracting companies. Some of them are being held for the purpose of attending meetings or signing contracts.
It has been discovered that the person in question was working in the country while holding a short-term business (B1) visa or an Electronic Travel Authorization (ESTA) that allows a 90-day visa-free stay, and that the person engaged in activities that were inconsistent with the purpose of the visa stay.
The U.S. authorities claim that the crackdown was targeted because the detainees were engaged in illegal activities.
"Some of these people entered the U.S. illegally by crossing the border, and some entered under the Visa Waiver Program, but were prohibited from working," he said.
"Some of them had visas but overstayed their visas," he said. "People who illegally crossed the US border" are mainly people from Central and South America who entered the country illegally and were employed at construction sites of Korean companies.
The term appears to refer to local third-national workers employed in the country. The detainees do not belong to a single company, but include employees from various subcontractors, Special Agent Schrank explained.
A significant number of those detained were transferred to an immigration detention facility in Foxton, and some were treated at the scene for dehydration, but no one was reportedly seriously injured.
LG Energy Solutions, which jointly operates the factory with Hyundai Motor, said in a statement that "employees from both companies have been detained." However, Hyundai Motor said, "To date, only the
"According to reports, none of those detained are employees of Hyundai Motors," he said. The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs also confirmed on the same day that some South Koreans had been detained. Lee Jae Woo, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Reporter
"We have dispatched staff from the Embassy in Washington and the Consulate General in Atlanta to the site," a provincial official said at a briefing, adding, "We are in close consultation with the U.S. side to ensure that the rights and interests of our citizens are not unduly infringed."
The crackdown involved the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and others.
This incident is expected to have an impact on South Korea-US diplomacy.
The country had just held a summit with President Donald Trump in Washington and pledged $150 billion in U.S. investment, including in the battery industry.
The Georgia battery factory is being built as a joint venture between Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solutions and is expected to begin operations next year.
The Georgia state government has touted the $7.6 billion Hyundai electric vehicle plant as the largest economic development project in the state's history.
Due to this crackdown, all construction work at the site has been suspended. A local spokesperson said, "We are cooperating with the authorities' investigation."
"We are working with the South Korean government to secure the early release of our employees," said Seong.