Memphis nightclub raid leads to 121 ICE arrests
Aug 30, 2025·Location: Memphis, TN

ICE, aided by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, raided the El Corralón nightclub in the Berclair neighborhood of Memphis at 1 a.m. on August 30, targeting illegal gambling operations and a Honduran national suspected of running criminal activity there. Agents shut down the music, seized slot machines, and checked immigration status of patrons on the dance floor, ultimately arresting 121 people for lacking proof of legal status, though only five had criminal histories. Defense attorneys and the ACLU of Tennessee questioned whether the gambling-related warrants provided sufficient legal basis for the immigration arrests.
Sources
More incidents in Tennessee
- 81-year-old Iranian man freed after seven months in ICE detentionSep 3, 2026 · Nashville, TN
- ICE detains about 10-14 workers in raid at Greeneville, Tennessee Chinese buffetSep 2, 2026 · Greeneville, TN
- Parents of at least 16 children detained in pre-dawn ICE raid at Memphis nightclubAug 31, 2026 · Memphis, TN
- Father detained by ICE outside his home in TennesseeAug 22, 2026 · Greeneville, TN
- Nursing mother separated from infant and toddler with Down syndrome after ICE arrest, later releasedAug 14, 2026 · Nashville, TN
- Asylum-seeking mother detained by ICE after unfounded Nashville child welfare checkAug 13, 2026 · Nashville, TN