TUPPER LAKE, N.Y. — Immigrations and Customs Enforcement conducted a raid Feb. 18 at a New York state lumber mill and detained nine employees. 

In a statement to North Country Public Radio, the parent company of Tupper Lake Pine Mill, The Matra Group, said that the employees were authorized to work in the U.S. "We can confirm that the Tupper Lake Pine Mill, owned by the Matra Group, was subject to an ICE raid this past Tuesday,” Nicholas Drouin, Matra co-president and director of manufacturing operations, said in a statement to NCPR. 

According to the NCPR, Drouin said ICE didn’t provide a warrant in advance of the raid. “Nine employees were detained, all of whom were, to our knowledge, authorized to work in the United States, as we verify all employees through the I-9 process,” he said. All U.S. employers must follow that process to verify workers' identities and employment eligibility., 

Reports including from the Adirondack Daily Enterprise, which first reported the story, did not indicate the nationality of the workers, how long they had worked at the mill, or their current status.

The mill — formerly known as the Tupper Lake Hardwoods Inc. — is owned by the Quebec-based Matra Group, a lumber harvesting and distribution company. The mill was acquired by Matra in 2021 and saws pine before the logs are sent to the company’s other plants for further processing.

Woodworking Network reached out by email to the ICE public affairs office for comment. This story will be updated when further information is available.