More immigration arrests at Oberlin restaurant (The Chronicle-Telegram)

More immigration arrests at Oberlin restaurant

Cindy Leise | The Chronicle-Telegram
11/4/2008

OBERLIN — Two more Mexican nationals working at Casa Fiesta restaurant have been arrested, according to immigration officials.

The arrest of the two men occurred Thursday morning as they were arriving for work at Casa Fiesta at 84 S. Main St., said Mike Gilhooly, a spokesman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Two employees of the Casa Fiesta in Fremont and one employee of Casa Fiesta in Ashland also were taken into custody Thursday, he said.

The arrests of suspected illegal aliens follow raids on July 23 that resulted in the arrest of five employees of the Oberlin Casa Fiesta and 53 other workers at Casa Fiesta restaurants in the towns of Ashland, Fremont, Norwalk, Oregon, Sandusky, Vermilion and Youngstown.

After the arrests in July, about 100 members of the Oberlin community held a rally in support of the workers.

Mark Fahringer, chairman of the board of Lorain County Catholic Action Commission, who organized the rally, said he heard rumors about the latest arrests and was concerned. He said some community members hope to persuade Oberlin City Council to declare itself a “sanctuary city” where police do not cooperate with immigration enforcement efforts.

Fahringer compared the community’s support for the illegal aliens to the efforts of residents of Oberlin and Wellington 150 years ago to free fugitive slave John Price. As a result of the rescue, Oberlin became known as “the town that started the Civil War.”

David Sonner, president of Oberlin City Council, said it’s too early to state an opinion on the issue of becoming a sanctuary city.

“We would consider anything that comes before us,” Sonner said.

Oberlin police Capt. Clifton Barnes said police do not routinely check on the immigration status of residents and workers. Barnes, however, expressed some concern about the city declaring itself a sanctuary city.

“It doesn’t sound like it would be a good idea to pick and choose which laws to enforce,” he said.

Contact Cindy Leise at 329-7245 or cleise@chroniclet.com.