Federal immigration agents carried out an enforcement action at an Emmett construction site Tuesday, Aug. 4, as part of a day that also included reported immigration enforcement activity at a construction site in the Eagle area.

The activity was first reported by KTVB, which confirmed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity at construction sites in Emmett and Eagle. Workers at a construction site along Rapid Road in Emmett told KTVB they saw three to four people taken into custody.

The Messenger-Index has not been able to independently confirm the number of people detained in Emmett.

Gem County Sheriff’s officials confirmed to the Messenger-Index on Thursday that they had no involvement in ICE’s enforcement actions conducted Aug. 4 in Emmett. However, they said ICE notified the sheriff’s office in advance that it would be “conducting ICE operations” that day.

The Messenger-Index reached out to ICE and the Department of Homeland Security seeking confirmation of the number of people detained and whether the Emmett and Eagle actions were connected or part of a larger operation. Neither agency had responded as of Aug. 10.

Idaho immigration attorney Nikki Ramirez, of Ramirez-Smith Law, told the Messenger-Index she had been contacted by a few people regarding the Emmett enforcement action, primarily family members or coworkers of those affected. Ramirez said she did not know the total number of people detained.

Ramirez said that, as of the time she spoke with the Messenger-Index last week, she was not aware of anyone involved in the operation who had been released from ICE custody.

Ramirez said she had also heard of more than one enforcement action that day and has recently seen an increase in immigration enforcement at construction sites. She said she did not know whether the Emmett and Eagle actions were directly connected.

“I think it’s just broader enforcement,” Ramirez said, adding that she does not have information about ICE’s internal decisions regarding where or when enforcement actions are conducted.

Ramirez said the recent focus on construction sites represents a change from some of the enforcement activity she has encountered previously.

“The construction site raids, this is a new thing,” Ramirez said. “This is something we have not seen until just recently.”

Based on accounts Ramirez said she received from people affected by recent enforcement activity, agents arrived at worksites and questioned workers about their immigration status and where they were born. Ramirez said her understanding was that workers at the sites were broadly questioned rather than agents approaching only specific individuals.

Ramirez also said the majority of people she has dealt with in recent immigration enforcement cases have not had criminal histories. She said she has recently represented people with pending immigration applications and work permits who were detained, and described what she has seen as an increase in detentions of people without criminal histories.

In Eagle, KTVB reported receiving video showing an encounter between federal agents and a construction worker. The video showed an agent asking the worker where he was born and repeatedly requesting identification before eventually walking away after determining the worker was not the person agents were seeking. KTVB later confirmed the worker is a U.S. citizen.

Another video provided to KTVB appeared to show people running through an Eagle neighborhood during the enforcement action.

The Ada County Sheriff’s Office later said one of its deputies, who was beginning a shift, became aware of a person fleeing from ICE agents after residents reported someone running through neighborhood backyards. According to the sheriff’s office, the deputy encountered the person and contacted ICE personnel, who then apprehended the individual.

The Ada County Sheriff’s Office said the deputy had no prior knowledge of the operation and the agency was not involved beyond the deputy’s encounter with the individual.

Ramirez said reports she received Aug. 4 indicated that both the Eagle-area and Emmett incidents involved construction sites.

Ramirez, who has practiced law since 2012, said she has represented clients from previous immigration enforcement actions across Idaho. She said attorneys representing detained individuals may seek federal court review through habeas corpus proceedings depending on the circumstances of a case.