Authorities detained six Guatemalan nationals on Wednesday at a residential property in Cambridge, Maryland, following a report to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The incident gained widespread attention after it was livestreamed on social media, showing agents taking the workers into custody while they were finishing a roofing project.
Bryan Polanco, a legal coworker and Dominican national with permanent U.S. residency, recorded the thirty-minute encounter and shared it with viewers online.
Polanco alleged that the homeowner waited until the multi-day job was nearly finished before contacting immigration authorities to report the crew.
The footage shows agents in tactical vests on the perimeter while workers are ordered down from the roof of the two-story home.
One segment appears to show the homeowner providing a ladder to agents to facilitate access to the workers as they were preparing to finish the task.
According to Polanco, the crew was owed approximately $10,000 for three days of labor, which included tearing off old shingles and installing new materials.
He claimed the homeowner was aware of the workers' immigration status from the beginning of the project and deliberately timed the call.
The workers, identified as men between the ages of 18 and 40, are currently in federal custody pending further legal proceedings.
Polanco told Univision DC that the homeowner threatened to call ICE again if any other immigrants returned to the property to finish the project.
Workers on the site were wearing apparel associated with Allied Remodeling of Central MD, a regional construction and renovation firm.
The company has not yet released a statement regarding the employment status of the individuals or the incident at the residence.
This enforcement action comes amid heightened border and internal security measures under the administration of President Donald Trump.
Local residents and digital observers have expressed conflicting views on the timing of the homeowner's report and the resulting detentions.
ICE officials have not commented on the specific tip that led to the arrests but confirmed the six individuals were processed for removal.
Legal advocates are reviewing the case to determine if labor violations occurred alongside the immigration enforcement.