Law enforcement agencies, including FBI Atlanta, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), conducted a raid on Wellmade Industries, a flooring manufacturer based in Cartersville, Georgia. The raid was part of a labor trafficking investigation that has been unfolding over several years. Zhu Chen, the company's owner, and his nephew, Jiayi Chen, were arrested facing charges related to trafficking persons for labor or sexual servitude, according to a report from FOX 5 Atlanta.
Confusion ensued as the raid commenced, with workers, thinking the raid was an immigration check, scattering in attempts to escape or find cover. This detail was shared with journalist Mario Guevara, who observed the situation directly, capturing the panicked environment as a multiagency operation descended upon the site. The agencies involved were executing federal search warrants at the business and several residences, shared Lindsay Williams, an ICE spokesperson during an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The allegations pointed to the trafficking of workers from other countries, primarily China, who were reported to be making them live and labor under inadequate conditions for diminished wages. According to a post by FBI Atlanta on social media, Wellmade Industries had been engaging in fraudulent and coercive practices to force immigrants into work. An FBI Atlanta spokesperson emphasized the importance of public assistance in reporting human trafficking, promoting the submission of tips through their hotline, as reported by FOX 5 Atlanta.
During the raids on Wellmade Industries, agents found workers on-site and relocated dozens to an off-site venue for interviews. FBI Assistant Special Agent Brian Ozden confirmed the ongoing nature of the investigation and underscored the need to explore working conditions and labor trafficking allegations, in a statement reported by FOX 5 Atlanta. Additionally, 20 translators were brought in to facilitate interviews, while several trafficking victims were identified, pointing to a complex network of exploitation with deep roots.
Wellmade Industries, which boasts manufacturing and distribution facilities in both Georgia and Oregon, has been serving major retailers such as Home Depot, Costco, and Floor & Décor. The company's operations, once lauded for job creation, are now under scrutiny for their labor practices and their role in an increasingly visible labor trafficking issue that has recently come to light in Georgia. According to the company's website, they boast a specialty in hard surface flooring, reflecting the growing demand in the industry they intended to meet when setting roots in Georgia back in the summer of 2020.
