Taqueria reopens following ICE raids, in need of employees

SAN BENITO, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A local taqueria is reopening its doors after having several employees taken at the hands of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Despite the reopening, staff say their struggles are far from over.

Taqueria El Mante was raided over the weekend in Harlingen and on Monday at its San Benito location.

During the San Benito raid, a 37-year-old woman, Maria Isabel Cruz-Salas, was among those who was detained by ICE. A criminal complaint filed the next day stated that Cruz-Salas kicked an HSI agent in the face while he was attempting to detain her during the worksite immigration inspection. Cruz-Salas is scheduled to go before a judge on June 18. If convicted, she could face a maximum fine of eight years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine.

Anita Quinones, who works at El Mante, told ValleyCentral that the restaurant was closed for several days following the raids on its employees.

The taqueria lost eight employees who were detained on site and says it is working to fill the positions with people who can legally work in the U.S. But Quinones says this is a difficult feat.

She says there is too much clientele and not enough staff.

"We just tell them [the customer] that it is going to take a while because we have limited staff and then they decide if they want to wait or not," Quinones said.