Montgomery County officials have received reports that illegal immigrants from Virginia are moving into the county after several Virginia counties began cracking down on them, officials in the county say.
Juan, a Peruvian immigrant who declined to give his name because he does not have immigration papers, said that two weeks ago he left a “great job” driving a construction truck in Prince William County because of concerns about deportation. He previously made $16 an hour, had community college tuition partially covered and received health insurance from his Virginia employer. Now, he looks for day labor jobs on a street corner in Wheaton, but he hasn’t found one yet.
“The police were going to stop me and ask for documents,” said Juan, who lives in Prince George’s County. “I decided not to go [to Virginia] anymore because if they deport me, then I’m not saving any money. … So I stay here, like many people do, becauseI can’t stay there anymore. My job is there waiting for me, but I can’t go there anymore.”
The Prince William County Board of Supervisors voted last week to deny services to illegal immigrants and to expand police department powers to enable officers to begin the deportation process. Loudoun County officials also are examining how to deny services to illegal immigrants.
Natalie Cantor, director of Montgomery’s Mid-County Regional Services Center, said she briefed County Executive Ike Leggett, and several county department heads that she had heard reports from local immigrant group leaders that Virginia immigrants had been migrating to the Montgomery area to work, live or both.
“When one jurisdiction tries to force people to move around, they don’t leave,” Leggett said. “They either shift the burden from one community to another, or they go underground. That’s why this is not a solution.”
