A federal raid on a Disney cruise ship docked in San Diego last month reportedly ended with uniformed Disney crew members handcuffed in zip ties in front of passengers. Yet weeks after the incident, why exactly the workers were detained has come under scrutiny.
Leaders from the immigrant rights group Unión del Barrio demanded Tuesday that federal agents explain the motive behind the raids at Port of San Diego on April 23 and April 25. The group condemned the actions during a news conference, calling them “abductions” without due process.
But U.S. Customs and Border Protection has refuted that account, saying in an email to SFGATE on Thursday that CBP agents raided eight cruise ships between April 23 and 27, not just the Disney ship in San Diego, and that as a result of those raids, they interviewed 28 people and detained 27 of them on suspicion of handling or viewing child pornography. The individuals included workers from the Philippines, Portugal and Indonesia, a CBP spokesperson who declined to share their name on record told SFGATE. The agency canceled those workers’ visas and returned them to their home countries, the spokesperson said.
A Disney spokesperson who declined to share their name on the record confirmed that the raid included some Disney workers, who have since been fired by the company.
Benjamin Prado, a leader with Unión del Barrio, said in an email to SFGATE on Thursday that the group was trying to ensure the detained individuals were allowed to exercise their rights but declined to comment further.
“We are waiting to obtain the full statements from ICE and CBP rather than relying on news articles,” Prado said in an email.
Unión del Barrio said workers for Holland America Line, which is owned by Carnival, were also detained. Neither Holland America Line nor Carnival returned SFGATE’s requests for comment.
The Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles released a statement Wednesday that said the office “views with concern” the fact that Filipino seafarers were detained by CBP and were then returned to the Philippines. The statement did not include any specific concerns. An unnamed spokesperson for the consulate declined to comment further.
The confusion surrounding the raid comes as tensions mount a year and half into President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign. The federal government has increased raids and arrests across the country, including at sensitive sites like schools, hospitals and religious institutions, which historically have been informally exempt from immigration raids. Immigrant rights activists have accused the federal government of violating human rights and undermining public trust.
Last month’s cruise ship raids were part of what Sandra Grisolia, a spokesperson for Homeland Security Investigations, which investigates international crimes, called “Operation Tidal Wave,” according to the Washington Times. That name appears to be referencing a joint operation between the state of Florida and the federal government that resulted in over 10,000 arrests, according to a January news release from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
