The governor has long railed against Colony Ridge, an area north of the Grand Parkway just east of the Eastex Freeway.
Abbott said Texas troopers and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) are conducting an immigration enforcement operation.
An ABC13 crew spotted multiple people being stopped on roads and parking lots by state troopers.
Eyewitness News spoke with people who said they were worried.
"I am scared for my family," Delmis Lopez, who is from Honduras, said. "A lot scared."
Lopez has relatives who she worries could be deported.
"There is a lot of criminal activity. If someone is deported from here, you're going back to certain death," she told ABC13 in Spanish.
For years, this majority Latino area has been part of unfounded theories involving crime and immigration.
"I'm mad and bothered because they are innocent people trying to make a living and provide for their families," Wendy Moreno said in Spanish.
Without providing any evidence, some state lawmakers have called Colony Ridge a hub for cartel operations.
Abbott has confirmed he has been working with the director of ICE for months to target the area.
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