BLUFFTON — Following a law enforcement operation, the State Law Enforcement Division charged five people in with identity fraud to obtain employment or avoid detection from law enforcement.
All five are Hispanic, according to jail records. Bluffton-based immigration attorney Sebastian Hernandez said the operation took place in the Pritchardsville area.
Beaufort County Sheriff’s Lt. Danny Allen said SLED led the operation. He said deputies helped with “support,” but he would not further elaborate. He said further questions should be directed to SLED.
A spokesperson for SLED did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This year, SLED and the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office signed agreements with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s 287(g) task force program, which deputizes select members of the law enforcement agency to detain people on immigration charges.
Sheriff P.J. Tanner’s decision to join the program was met with local scrutiny. Locals packed rooms on each side of the Broad River to interrogate his choice.
At various points throughout the year, SLED has distributed news releases when it has made similar charges. Those arrests were made by agents in SLED’s immigration enforcement unit, which was created in 2024.