A day after multiple federal and local agencies raided restaurants across Alabama, a newly unsealed federal indictment linked one of the target venues to an alleged scheme to hire, transport and house undocumented immigrant workers in another state.

Tuesday’s actions took place at 14 locations in six Alabama counties and involved federal search warrants related to drug trafficking, human smuggling, document fraud and financial crimes.

Cesar Campos-Reyes, a 52-year-old Lee County resident described as the owner of five restaurants, surrendered late Tuesday on charges of bank fraud, wire fraud and money laundering.

Authorities said more than 40 people believed to be undocumented workers were taken into custody.

In an email to supporters on Tuesday, the non-profit Hispanic and Immigrant Center of Alabama (HICA) did not mention the operations directly but did address the recent immigrant crackdown by the Trump Administration.

CEO Carlos E. Alemán wrote, “Right now, everything feels at risk.”

A Tuesday raid on Colt Grill BBQ & Spirits in Foley had some elements that made it stand out from the day’s other actions.

For one thing, Colt is a barbecue chain, not a Mexican restaurant.

For another, its four sister restaurants in Arizona also were raided, in a case that officials described as “a complex criminal investigation involving alleged criminal activity including money laundering and labor exploitation.”

A statement from Homeland Security Investigations said that investigation had been under way for three years.

Colt Grill was founded in Arizona by Brenda Marie Clouston and her husband, Robert Clouston.

Brenda Clouston previously told AL.com that the couple stumbled across Foley as a location more or less by accident while visiting the Gulf Coast for a Kenny Chesney concert.

Efforts to reach Clouston have been unsuccessful.

An indictment unsealed Tuesday in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona does not address the money laundering allegations.

But it alleges that the Cloustons and two employees – Luis Pedro Rogel-Jaimes and Iris Romero-Molina – conspired to staff their Arizona restaurants with undocumented immigrant workers.

The indictment produced by a grand jury was filed under seal in late May.

The Cloustons and their fellow defendants are charged with a pattern and practice of knowingly employing unauthorized aliens; conspiracy to bring illegal aliens into the United States unlawfully; conspiracy to transport illegal aliens; conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens; and conspiracy to encourage and induce an alien to unlawfully enter the United States.

Prosecutors allege that Robert Clouston, Rogel-Jaimes and Romero-Molina agreed on a scheme to bring in undocumented workers via a shell company so that Colt Grill could dodge requirements to verify that they were able to work legally.

The indictment says Robert Clouston leased several residences to house those workers and acquired vehicles to transport them to work.

The Cloustons allegedly paid their two partners and/or their shell company, with a portion of that money going to the employees.

The indictment makes several specific allegations that depict Robert Clouston as being actively and deeply involved in the illegal activity:

He allegedly told a Colt Grill manager not to worry about calculating pay, taxes and worker’s compensation for some new hires because they were “Pedro’s people,” an apparent reference to Rogel-Jaimes.

He allegedly was seen handing cash to Rogel-Jaimes “while shaking hands and discussing bringing more Mexican national workers up from Mexico.”

He allegedly “instructed two managers with the Sedona location to fire United States citizen employees in the Sedona Colt Grill to create employment openings for undocumented Mexican nationals for the purpose of having less expensive labor costs.”

In addition to the felony charges, the grand jury indictment also indicates that authorities plan to pursue forfeiture of assets upon conviction.

While the indictment does refer to the Cloustons’ ownership of the Colt Grill in Foley, it does not specify that any of the immigration-related offenses happened there.

Homeland Security Investigations said late Tuesday that four people allegedly involved in money laundering had been arrested along with “over 20 immigration related arrests” in the Colt Grill matter.

But it did not identify them or say where the arrests had occurred.

Attempts to reach Brenda Clouston on Tuesday had drawn no response. As of midafternoon Wednesday, court records showed that she had been arrested on Tuesday. An arraignment and detention hearing were set for Monday, July 21, in Flagstaff, Ariz. The status of Robert Clouston, Rogel-Jaimes and Romero-Molina remained unknown. Court records did not yet identify any attorneys representing the four.

HICA CEO Alemán’s remarks issued Tuesday did not address specifics of Tuesday’s raids but raised concerns about such activities in general.

“Just in the past few weeks, community members have been detained during scheduled ICE check-ins — people who have followed every legal instruction, only to be unexpectedly taken into custody,” he said.

“Most recently, in Gulf Shores, more than 30 individuals were detained during a raid at a high school construction site. These events are not isolated. They reflect a growing pattern of intimidation and enforcement that makes it harder for families to feel safe, even when they are doing everything right. Due process is being quietly dismantled.”

Alemán urged supporters to “speak out.”

“We won’t ignore that both political parties have failed to address the broken immigration system. We won’t pretend this is just about the border. This is about our neighbors, co-workers, and children,” he wrote.