It happened in Farmington, which is located in St. Francois County.

This past weekend, the sheriff says he arrested 14 illegal immigrants.  The men were hired to help build a new hotel.

The sheriff says he hoped the arrests would help restore jobs to legal citizens.  The unemployment rate in St. Francois County is more than 11 percent.

But when the sheriff called the Office of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he was told the case was not a priority and he had no authority to continue holding the men.

The explanation isn’t sitting well with some residents.

“They’re taking jobs away from people that need jobs right now that are US citizens,” says Gerald Bowyer, an unemployed glass worker. “To me, it seems like the illegals in this country got more rights than what the Americans do.”

For his part, the sheriff says he’ll continue to investigate complaints of illegal workers, but fears the arrests will end with more releases.