And they appeared to open a new front in Trump's expansion of immigration enforcement, which has already brought a 40 percent increase in deportation arrests and pledges to spend billions of dollars on a border wall with Mexico.A top official at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Wednesday's operation was "the first of many" and "a harbinger of what's to come" for employers. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested 21 undocumented immigrants in the raids of 7-Eleven franchises in 17 states and the capital, they said, amid a broad crackdown by the year-old administration of President Donald Trump. "This is what we're gearing up for this year and what you're going to see more and more of is these large-scale compliance inspections, just for starters," said Derek Benner, acting head of ICE's Homeland Security Investigations, which oversees cases against employers.After inspections, officials plan to look at whether the cases warrant administrative action or criminal investigations, Benner said. "It's not going to be limited to large companies or any particular industry, big, medium and small," Benner said.7-Eleven Stores Inc., based in Irving, Texas, said in a statement that the owners of its franchises are responsible for hiring and verifying work eligibility. “This means that all store associates in a franchised store are employees of the franchisee and not 7-Eleven Inc.”

The company added that it “takes compliance with immigration laws seriously and has terminated the franchise agreements of franchisees convicted of violating these laws.”

ICE characterized its action Wednesday as a “follow-up” to actions it took against 7-Eleven franchises in 2013. The chain with more than 8,600 convenience stores in the U.S. said it has previously ended franchise agreements for owners convicted of breaking employment laws.Unlike other enforcement efforts that have marked Trump's first year in office, Wednesday's actions were aimed squarely at store owners and managers, though 21 workers across the country were arrested on suspicion of being in the country illegally.Illegal hiring is rarely prosecuted, partly because investigations are time-consuming and convictions are difficult to achieve because employers can claim they were duped by fraudulent documents or intermediaries. John Sandweg, an acting ICE director under Obama, said significant fines instilled fear in employers and draining resources from other enforcement priorities.Wednesday's operation arose from a 2013 investigation that resulted in charges against nine 7-Eleven franchisees and managers in New York and Virginia. All but one, who was a fugitive until November 2017, pleaded guilty, and they were forced to pay more than $2.6 million in back wages.
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency conducts operations at 98 7-Eleven stores in 17 states, arresting 21 people suspected of being illegal immigrants.