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Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raided at least three businesses owned by restaurant entrepreneur Stanley Wang on Tuesday, including The New Famous Chinese Restaurant in Nashville, Chef Wang's in Murfreesboro and the Famous Chinese Restaurant in Smyrna.
About 50 suspected illegal immigrants were identified and detained during the sweep, Nashville-based Assistant United States Attorney Lee Deneke said in a statement issued Wednesday. Those detained were citizens of Mexico, the People's Republic of China, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Milissa Reierson, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, her department participated in the effort.
Some suspects picked up Tuesday could face federal court prosecution for any law violations not related to immigration.
The rest will go to immigration court and possibly be deported.
Federal agents, along with the Murfreesboro Police Department, also conducted an investigation at an East Clark Boulevard home in relation to the raids.
The Middle Tennessee sweep comes two months after a federal grand jury indictment aimed at Chinese restaurateurs ac cused of in ducing illegal immigrants to stay in the U.S. by providing them jobs, according to a news release on the ICE Web site.
Several employment agency owners from Georgia named in the indictments allegedly conspired with others to transport and provide jobs to immigrants who were illegally in the country from October 2006 through April.
Chef Wang's owner Stanley Wang and his wife, Margarat, moved to the Murfreesboro area approximately 10 years ago from New York City.
Mark Bell can be reached at 615-278-5153 or mbell@dnj.com. Staff writer Janell Ross contributed. Reach her at 726-5982 or jross1@tennessean.com.
