A Trump supporter's business is now struggling after multiple employees, allegedly with authorization to remain in the United States, were detained by immigration agents and placed in jail.
The workers are employed at a small roofing company and were heading to work on May 27 when they were detained by immigration agents on US 1 in Sugarloaf Key, according to Monroe County Sheriff's Office.
At least six workers have been detained who are all Nicaraguan nationals, reported NBC Miami.
The owner of the company, Vincent Scardina, who is a Trump supporter, says that he lost a third of his employees by losing that many workers.
"It's going to be really hard to replace those guys," Scardina said. "We're not able in Key West to just replace people as easily as, say, a big city, very limited people to pull from, and then you would have to train them, and that takes sometimes years."
He said their detainment took both a financial and emotional toll on his company.
"Well, you know, you get to know these guys, you become their friends, just not an employer, but a friend, and you see what happens to their family. It's... It's quite a shock," Vincent Scardina said.
"They are legally here. They have an authorization to stay," said Regilucia Smith, the attorney for the men.
Monroe County deputies were asked to move some of them men into a detention center in the keys "for deportation."
Five out of the six detained men are involved in active asylum cases and have all of their paperwork up to date.
"Valid work permit, not even close to be expired," Smith said. "... again, no criminal records, not here, not in Nicaragua."
"It was pretty obvious from the beginning that they were pulled over simply because they were six Latino men in a work truck," said Virgil Scardina, who works with the men.
Scardina, who agrees with Trump's deportation policies, thought the administration would focus only on deporting criminals.
"It's not just happening to me. I mean, it's happening across the board to several contractors," he said. "I know they're all being hit by this hard. I know of one landscaper that lost nine or 10 of his whole crew he had and he's just totally out of business all of a sudden, just like that."
Originally published on Latin Times
