U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers raided a Memphis bar Aug. 30, detaining over 100 people.
Around 1 a.m. on Aug. 30, agents arrived at El Corralón with a search warrant as part of an investigation involving illegal gambling machines and alleged drug activity, according to Vecindarios901. V901 is an immigrant advocacy organization that fields calls about ICE activity in Shelby County from Memphis residents.
The organization said detainees were taken away on buses.
"On August 30, ICE conducted a multi-agency targeted enforcement operation on Macon Road in Memphis, Tennessee," an ICE spokesperson said via email. "This is an ongoing investigation. More information will be released when available."
Here is what we know so far.
Where is El Corralón located?
El Corralón
sits on the edge of East Memphis' Berclair neighborhood between The Heights and Grahamwood at 3870 Macon Road. It is at the corner of Macon and Maria Street.
How many people were arrested at El Corralón?
The exact number of individuals arrested has not been released, but V901 indicates over 100 people were detained.
Were Memphis Police involved in the ICE raid at El Corralón?
Neither the Memphis Police Department nor the Memphis Safe Task Force were involved in the raid.
A spokesperson with the Memphis Safe Task Force said the raid was not an MSTF operation.
Memphis Mayor Paul Young said in an Aug. 30 statement that the Memphis Police Department was not involved in planning or carrying out the operation. Officers responded after they were requested to assist with traffic and crowd control when people began gathering in the area, and MPD did not arrest or detain anyone, according to the statement.
"This morning's ICE raid on Macon Road has been unsettling for many people in our community, particularly families who are still trying to understand what happened and what it means for their loved ones," Young said. "I can assure you of this: the people impacted by what happened this morning are our neighbors. They are part of the Memphis community, and they deserve to be treated with dignity."
Jordan Green covers trending news for The Commercial Appeal and Tennessee. She can be reached at jordan.green@commercialappeal.com.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: ICE raid at Memphis bar El Corralón: What we know after 100+ detained
