Walk into the once-bustling kitchen at HomeSlyce pizzeria in Mount Vernon and you’ll find two managers who are now working overtime, rotating shifts prepping pizzas, sandwiches, salads and desserts.

Since immigration enforcement actions earlier this month, the restaurant’s been reeling over a shortage of workers and absence of answers.

Four staff members of the Maryland chain declined to use their names for fear of retaliation from customers and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, allege that on the afternoon of Feb. 6, at least three ICE agents walked into the business on North Charles Street and left with the eatery’s three cooks handcuffed in zip ties. It took no more than an hour, staff say. But two weeks later, the restaurant is still scrambling to meet demands.

The incident comes after President Trump directed ICE officers across the country to arrest, detain and deport large numbers of immigrants living without legal status. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem previously referred to the ICE arrests as a move toward “making our streets safe.” In the last few weeks, the administration has enlisted more federal workers, including Internal Revenue Service and Department of Justice employees, to assist with deportations, and done away with Biden-era protocols banning agents from pursuing people at schools, churches or hospitals.

While some Marylanders have seen this targeted activity taking place, rumored raids in the Baltimore area have stoked fear among many local businesses and immigrant communities.

Restaurant staff on the same street as HomeSlyce, including workers at Cazbar, Mick O’Shea’s Irish Pub and Streets Market & Cafe, said they had no idea there had been ICE enforcement in the area and were shocked to learn agents had detained workers at HomeSlyce.

Despite watching raids play out on national news, broadcast on televisions hanging above HomeSlyce’s bar, a staff member who spoke with agents the day of the arrests said they had no idea it was happening in their own backyard.

Pizzeria staff allege the agents came without warning.

Upon arriving at 336 N. Charles St., at least three ICE agents passed by two staff working in the restaurant’s dining area, who directed the agents to a third staff member sitting at a back table. The agents introduced themselves and provided a notice of inspection, the third staff member alleged. Agents asked whether the employees at the business were eligible to work and requested documentation, which staff members allege was part of an I-9 audit, which checks for the federal forms that verify employees' eligibility. Staff were provided an I-9 form application to submit to the agency along with proof of the employees’ U.S. work authorization.

The staff member said they were not familiar with the audit process.

Emily Tulli, an attorney formerly with the U.S Department of Labor who has worked with immigrants for nearly two decades, said employees are not typically detained in I-9 audits. She referred to the traditional process as a “desktop raid,” where ICE checks if an employer has a legal workforce and typically imposes monetary fines if there is a violation. She added that employers are legally required to check their employees’ eligibility upon hiring.

During Trump’s first term, I-9 audits increased fourfold when compared to the Obama administration, according to Tulli. But she called the audit the HomeSlyce staff described “a new fact pattern.” It’s an unexpected hybrid that sounds like a mix between an audit and a raid, the latter of which entails officers entering a business unannounced and at times results in detainment, she said.

In an audit, employers must mail in I-9 forms with worker documentation to verify staff identities within three days of the agents’ arrival. The HomeSlyce staff member said he offered agents the documentation on-site that he said proves the cooks were able to work legally, but officers instead asked the business to send the paperwork in the mail, which he says he did.

Agents then asked the staff member how many people were working in the restaurant, and whether they could speak to employees in the back kitchen. The staff member agreed.

After about 15 minutes in the kitchen, agents led the cooks outside the restaurant and into a car, the staff member recalled. They said it was confusing to see the agents remove people, some of whom had families and young kids, before inspecting their documents.

None of the restaurant’s staff have heard from the three employees since.

The local pizzeria’s franchisee agent has not responded to requests for comment. An ICE detainee database showed the employees were brought to Abyon Farmville Detention Center in Virginia.

It’s still unclear why the agents chose to focus on HomeSlyce’s Mount Vernon location. Tulli said employers should expect more enforcement and make sure workers’ documents are up-to-date and on hand. Owners can also educate staff by letting them know officers require a judge-signed warrant to enter a private space. Staff do not otherwise have to give consent. The staff member who interacted with agents said they did not say they had a judicial warrant nor did they mention searching for a specific name. The staff member was not aware of any crimes committed by the employees that would have made them a specific target for ICE.

A local restaurateur who has operated in the industry for 30 years said that in his experience, it’s rare to see ICE agents doing an on-site audit for worker eligibility. The business owner declined to be named for fear of being targeted. He witnessed one audit at a Baltimore restaurant about five years ago, when ICE agents arrived, provided a notice, and asked the owner to fill out an I-9 form and send workers’ documentation. But he described the interaction as officers “walking in and leaving.” He’s never heard of people being removed.

The Banner reached out to several restaurateurs in the Baltimore area to ask whether they had experienced a similar audit. None had.

Neither ICE’s national public affairs nor local outreach offices responded to multiple requests for comment on the alleged incident.

In the days since the detainment, the remaining restaurant workers say they’ve been working overtime to keep the eatery running.

They haven’t hired new employees because they don’t have the manpower to train them, staff said. But they’re also holding out hope they see their cooks walk back through the door.