Tennessee state authorities have announced that eight migrant workers have been arrested for looting areas in the state flooded by Hurricane Helen.
Washington County Sheriff Keith Sexton announced on Facebook on Monday that deputies arrested eight men on suspicion of looting in the flood-ravaged 107 Precinct on Saturday.
Five of the suspects were identified as Alvin Nahun Vega-Raparo, 24, David Byron Rapallo, 37, Kevin Noe Martinez-Lopez, 25, and Marvin Hernandez-Martinez, 43. Dane Gabriel Guillen Guillen, 37, was charged with aggravated robbery of an occupied property. structure. Three others are charged with robbery: Jesus Leodan García Peneda, 51, Josue Berardo Ortiz-Valdez, 30, and Arcee Leonel Ortiz-Valdez, 33.
All were being held in the Washington County Jail as of Monday, with bail set at $20,000 each, the sheriff's office said. All were scheduled to appear in court later Monday.
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The office added that Washington County deputies continue to patrol areas “during the catastrophic flooding, particularly along the flood zone.”
Eight immigrant suspects charged with looting in Washington County, Tennessee. (Washington County, Tennessee Sheriff's Office)
A spokesperson for the sheriff's office confirmed to FOX News Digital that all eight suspects are immigrant workers who are in the United States on legal work visas.
“Things will change as a result of the charges,” a spokesperson said by phone. After dark, authorities will continue to stop anyone found in the flood zone, regardless of appearance, she said.
“We have seen far too much of this type of behavior,” a sheriff's office spokesperson said.
After heavy rains from Hurricane Helen in Lake Lure, North Carolina on September 28, 2024, the Rocky Broad River flows into Lake Lure, flooding the town with debris from Chimney Rock, North Carolina. (Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)
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Five people facing aggravated theft charges were arrested for ransacking homes, while three others were arrested for ransacking vacant homes and “barely surviving” buildings, police said.
A spokeswoman said the radio had just arrived by helicopter the day before to reach areas where cell phone service was difficult before the hurricane's severe impact.
Flood damage to a bridge over Mill Creek in the aftermath of Hurricane Helen in Old Fort, North Carolina, September 30, 2024. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
East Tennessee was hit by heavy rain and flooding as a result of Hurricane Helen. Governor Bill Lee surveyed flood damage in East Tennessee a few days ago.
At least 133 people in six Southeastern states are believed to have been killed in the storm, which caused damage from Florida's Gulf Coast to Virginia's Appalachian Mountains.
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The toll rose steadily as emergency workers arrived in areas isolated by collapsed roads, failing infrastructure and widespread flooding. White House Homeland Security Adviser Liz Sherwood Randall suggested at a briefing Monday that as many as 600 people were still missing as of Monday afternoon, and that some may have died.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
