Federal agents detained several people Tuesday afternoon while conducting an operation on Manhattan’s busy Canal Street, searching for undocumented immigrants who may have connections to illegal street vending, according to a senior law enforcement official familiar with the matter.
Dozens of agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations were seen wearing marked vests near the intersection of Canal and Broadway. They detained several people and loaded them into unmarked vans waiting nearby.
The senior law enforcement official said ICE and HSI were looking for undocumented individuals who may have been engaged in illegally selling items on the street. Sidewalk vendors are a common sight throughout the city and have been so for decades, especially in the area of Canal Street.
Federal agents were seen taking five or six people into custody, though an official number was not immediately known. Two men who were initially seen being detained were later released; both told NBC New York that they are American citizens…