California Company Fined by ICE for Hiring Illegal Immigrant Employees

As part its enforcement strategy to reduce illegal employment and protect job opportunities for the nation's lawful workforce, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced Tuesday, February 5, 2013, that 10 employers in San Diego and Imperial counties were fined by ICE during fiscal year 2012 for various employment-related violations.

Collectively, the fines totaled more than $173,800, with the largest fine, $50,000, being lodged against a San Diego-area medical transportation service. The fines were imposed after ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) found the businesses had failed to comply with laws prohibiting the hiring of unauthorized workers.

One of the ways HSI identifies potential hiring violations is by auditing employers' Form I-9s, the document businesses use to verify an employee's eligibility to work. Employers are required to complete and retain a Form I-9 for each individual they hire. In fiscal year 2012, HSI conducted 151 worksite audits in San Diego and Imperial counties, compared to 86 audits the previous year and 63 audits in fiscal year 2010.

"Employers who build their business model upon an illegal workforce will be held accountable," said Derek Benner, special agent in charge for HSI San Diego. "We encourage employers to take the employee verification process seriously. Employers must understand that the integrity of their employment records is just as important to the federal government as the integrity of their tax files or banking records."

Below, in alphabetical order, is a list of the businesses in San Diego and Imperial counties that received final fine notices from ICE in fiscal year 2012:

·                             Aquarius Yacht Services – $13,744 fine

·                             Balboa Ambulance Incorporated – $50,000 fine

·                             El Sol Meat Market – $24,050 fine

·                             Harmony Egg Ranch – $9,000 fine

·                             International Consolidated Cargo – $7,480 fine

·                             Mexicali Chicken and Salad – $21,500 fine

·                             Old Town Buffet – $15,000 fine

·                             Rocha Trucking & Parking Inc. – $8,000 fine

·                             Stanford Sign and Awning Inc. – $9,600 fine

·                             TDG Aerospace – $15,427.50 fine

The $173,800 in civil fines lodged against area San Diego-area companies in fiscal year 2012 represents an 18 percent increase over fiscal year 2011, when HSI imposed $146,577 in civil fines locally against 11 employers.

While HSI continues to pursue criminal cases against unscrupulous employers, it now places increased emphasis on gaining employers' compliance and outreach to the business community. As part of this effort, HSI utilizes all available civil and administrative tools, including Form I-9 inspections, civil fines and debarment. HSI also actively promotes the ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers (IMAGE) outreach program. IMAGE is a voluntary partnership between the government and the private sector where employers receive invaluable training and are provided with additional tools to strengthen the integrity of their workforce and curtail the employment of unauthorized workers. There are currently 11 San Diego-area companies that are certified members of the IMAGE program.

Nationwide, HSI conducted more than 3,000 worksite audits in fiscal year 2012 as compared to 2,496 the previous year. In fiscal year 2012, the worksite audits and related investigations resulted in the issuance of 495 final fine notices totaling more than $12.4 million. That compares to 385 civil fines assessed in fiscal year 2011 totaling $16.3 million. 

11 Arrested for Immigration and Document Fraud Conspiracy, Attempted to Bribe USCIS Employee

Eleven men are in federal custody following their arrest Wednesday, November 28, 2012, in Myrtle Beach by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) for their attempt to fraudulently acquire immigration documents.

Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's Office for South Carolina have charged the men, 10 from Israel and one from Kenya, for knowingly conspiring with each other to procure by fraud resident alien and employment authorization documents.

The defendants, none of whom are from South Carolina, are accused of travelling to Myrtle Beach to meet with who they thought was a corrupt U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services employee. The men are alleged to have paid the supposedly corrupt employee varying amounts of money, typically $5,000 or $6,000, for the valid immigration documents. Following the arrest operation, HSI special agents seized more than $120,000 from the defendants.

"Defending the integrity of our immigration system is a key component of our national security system," said Brock. D. Nicholson, special agent in charge of HSI Atlanta. "Those who seek to corrupt our system must be swiftly identified and brought to justice."

The individuals arrested are charged under a criminal indictment, which raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The defendants are:

·                             Nevo Yosef Katzav

·                             Amir Arpally

·                             Assi David Nishri

·                             Einan Salach

·                             Idan Oren

·                             Omri Lipman

·                             Anat Bor

·                             Florence Tiego

·                             Lior Shriki

·                             Amos Shmilovich

·                             Eran Kol

Woman Pleads Guilty to Bribery and Document Fraud Scheme

A Tennessee woman pleaded guilty Wednesday, November 14, 2012, to paying approximately $30,000 in bribes to a former Tennessee Department of Public Safety supervisory license examiner in exchange for fraudulent licenses and permits. The guilty plea follows an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with assistance from the FBI and Tennessee Department of Safety.

Anny Castillo, 29, of Antioch, Tenn., a citizen of the Dominican Republic and lawful U.S. resident, pleaded guilty to bribery, conspiracy to unlawfully produce state identification documents, and to selling Social Security cards and citizenship documents.

"Fraudulent documents threaten the security of all citizens by making it easier for criminals to commit a range of offenses from identity theft to terrorism," said Raymond R. Parmer Jr., special agent in charge of HSI New Orleans, who oversees a five state area of responsibility including Tennessee. "This guilty plea should serve as a reminder that HSI and its law enforcement partners continually work together to identify and prosecute criminals who violate the public trust."

According to court documents, Castillo illegally obtained and sold genuine identification and citizenship documents to illegal aliens between August 2011 and April 2012. Undercover federal agents posing as illegal aliens subsequently learned from Castillo that she could also obtain fraudulent state licenses and permits for an additional fee.

Undercover federal agents accompanied Castillo to a driver testing center in Nashville where Larry Murphy, 54, of Antioch, Tenn., worked as a supervisory driver's license examiner. There Castillo paid Murphy more than $15,000 to issue fraudulent licenses to the undercover agents. Castillo admitted in court she and Murphy engaged in approximately 50 total transactions involving at least $30,000 in illegal payments.

Castillo and Murphy were both indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2012. Murphy pleaded guilty Nov. 6 and both are scheduled to be sentenced in February. Castillo and Murphy each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

ICE Detainee Intercultural Center Opens in Texas

The newly-established Detainee Intercultural Center at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) El Paso Processing Center in Texas is a place where men and women in ICE custody can reflect, meditate and worship. The modest 13-by-55 foot structure is part of the existing building.

"The El Paso Processing Center is the only ICE detention facility in the country with such a dedicated center," said Sandra Marinelarena, the interim assistant field office director, addressing the group of attendees at the center's dedication ceremony held in early October.
"The new Detainee Intercultural Center, not onlyserves the spiritual needs of people in our custody, but it's part of ICE's larger effort to reform the immigration detention system as a whole," said ICE Field Office Director Adrian Macias. "For the past three years, ICE has been making a concerted effort to move away from a punitive immigration detention system to one that's more suited to civil immigration. The Detainee Intercultural Center in El Paso is another positive step in that direction."

Also in attendance at the dedication ceremony was Father Joseph Molina of Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church in northeast El Paso, who blessed the new center. Leaders of all religious denominations are available at the Detainee Intercultural Center to minister to the spiritual needs of detainees, as well as lead religious services.

The El Paso Processing Center, sometimes referred to as the El Paso Immigration Detention Center in El Paso, houses immigrant detainees who are awaiting deportation or have pending immigration cases before the El Paso Immigration Court. The facility has space for approximately 840 inmates and an average daily population of 750 adult detainees.

Because of the facility's proximity to the border, it sometimes serves as a staging area for ICE to hold immigrants before removal. Detainees at the processing center are awaiting deportation for criminal activity or are being held for entering the country illegally.

Illegal Mexican National and Other Sentenced for Straw-Purchasing Firearms

The leader of a large straw-purchasing ring who was responsible for the purchase of more than 200 firearms is now headed to prison, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas. The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Yahir Ricardo Garcia-Matias, 29, a Mexican national in the United States illegally, was sentenced Wednesday, September 19, 2012, along with nine others responsible for making false statements on ATF Forms 4473 in the acquisition of firearms from federal firearms licensees (FFLs).

According to court documents, Garcia-Matias pleaded guilty to one count of straw purchasing in one case and to being an illegal alien in possession of firearms in another. On Sept. 19, U.S. District Judge Randy Crane sentenced him to 120 months for the firearms possession and another 60 months for straw purchasing. The sentences will run consecutively for a total of 180 months in prison.

Also sentenced Wednesday, September 19, 2012 was Jose Duran-Loera, 26, of Mercedes, Texas, who pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon and straw purchasing. He was sentenced to 120 and 60 months, respectively, which will also run consecutively for a total of 180 months in federal prison.

Judge Crane sentenced seven others in this case. The defendants are: Humberto Galvan, 22, and Juan Angel Nunez Jr., 25, both of Mercedes; Jose Espinoza, 24, of Weslaco; Angelo Rosa, 23, and Antonio Espinoza, 22, both of Edinburg; Ashley Trevino, 22, of San Juan; and Maria Isela Morales, 22, of Donna. All have pleaded guilty to one count of straw purchasing at varying times.

Galvan, Antonio Espinoza, Jose Espinoza, Rosa, Trevino and Morales were all sentenced to 46-month-terms of imprisonment. Nunez, who pleaded guilty to two different violations of straw purchasing, will serve a total of 108 months in prison.

Court documents indicate that beginning in September 2010, ATF agents began investigating several individuals who had made large numbers of purchases of highly trafficked firearms from The Armory, an FFL in McAllen. Agents interviewed several individuals involved in the case and discovered they had straw-purchased firearms for Loera or Nunez. Loera and Nunez would recruit individuals to make the purchases, give them money to make to purchase, then direct the buyers as to which store to use and what firearms to purchase. After the buyer had acquired the firearms they then transferred them to Nunez or Loera and were paid for making the purchase.

ATF agents identified Garcia-Matias and Nunez as senior members of the straw-purchasing organization. On May 23, ATF agents received information that Nunez was attempting to straw-purchase 10 AK-style rifles. After observing the purchase and once the firearms were loaded into Nunez's vehicle, agents approached and interviewed Nunez. He admitted at that time to straw-purchasing in cooperation with Garcia-Matias, who had provided the money to him. Nunez was followed back to the Rio Grande Valley where he was observed meeting with Garcia-Matias and another defendant, Juan Carlos Solis-Venegas, 39, a Mexican national living illegally in the United States, when Solis-Venegas turned the firearms over to them. After agents observed the firearms being transferred from Nunez's vehicle to the vehicle occupied by Garcia-Matias and Solis-Venegas, all were taken into custody. Solis-Vengas was identified by the parties as the person who brought the money to Garcia-Matias.

In total, Garcia-Matias was held to be responsible for well over 200 firearms.

Solis-Venegas was also charged in this case and subsequently pleaded guilty. He will be sentenced Oct. 4, and will remain in custody pending that hearing.

This prosecution was responsible for sending more than 25 leaders, recruiters and straw-purchasers to prison. Most of the firearms in the case were already in Mexico by the time agents were able to begin their investigation of the offenses. The majority of the prosecution was historical and based upon completed ATF Forms 4473 that were examined. No firearms were allowed into Mexico as a part of this investigation.

Garcia-Matias and Nunez have been in custody, as are Loera and Juan Espinoza. They will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The remaining six sentenced Sept. 19 had been on bond but were remanded to custody following the hearing Wednesday, September 19, 2012.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Schammel, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted the case.

California Man Pleads Guilty to Forging Driver's Licenses

A Fresno man pleaded guilty Monday, August 20, 2012, in federal court to conspiring to unlawfully produce California driver's licenses, following a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Investigations Division, Office of Internal Affairs.

According to court documents, Yadwinder Singh, 50, recruited recipients in a scheme to sell fraudulently obtained commercial driver's licenses. Singh would pass on information he obtained from potential recipients to former DMV technician Alfonso Casarez, who then proceeded to alter the electronic DMV records to make it appear as though the recipients had passed the required written and behind-the-wheel tests, causing the DMV to automatically issue a genuine license.

Singh found his clients by waiting outside the Fresno DMV offices and approaching DMV visitors with an offer to assist them in obtaining commercial licenses without the need to pass the required tests. Another of his recruiting methods involved having clients complete a DMV application and receiving rudimentary instruction from Singh in operating a commercial truck. Upon giving Singh a substantial "tuition" payment, participants would be informed they had passed. A portion of that payment would go to Casarez, who would facilitate the unlawful issuance of the license.

Singh is schedule to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill Oct. 29. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Henry Z. Carbajal, III and Grant B. Rabenn.

Mexican National Sentenced to 15 Months for Illegal Reentry

A twice-deported Mexican national was sentenced Wednesday, July 18, 2012, to 15 months in prison for illegally re-entering the United States after having been previously deported.

The sentence resulted from an investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

Reynaldo Coronado-Piedra, 33, was sentenced July 18 by U.S. District Judge Barbara B. Crabb, Western District of Wisconsin, for illegally re-entering the United States after having been deported. He pleaded guilty to the charge April 26. Re-entering the United States after being formally deported is a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Coronado-Piedra was first removed from the United States Nov. 19, 2004 following a probation revocation stemming from a 2000 Texas conviction for cocaine possession. He returned to the United States without permission and was convicted in Texas in 2006 of marijuana possession. He was again removed from the United States Jan. 10, 2008 after he completed his prison sentence. He returned to the United States without permission a second time. On Sept. 8, 2009, he was convicted in Portage County, Wis., for possessing marijuana with intent to deliver.

Coronado-Piedra will again be removed to Mexico after he completes his prison sentence handed down July 18.

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Leah Fillbach Lenzendorf, Western District of Wisconsin, prosecuted the case.

Brazilian Native Suspected of Child Trafficking Deported

A Brazilian woman wanted in her native country as a suspect in a child trafficking investigation was deported and turned over to Brazilian federal police Wednesday, June 27, 2012, by agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Phoenix.

Vania Maria Plasse, 47, of Governador Valaderes, Brazil, was repatriated to Brazil aboard a commercial aircraft under escort by ERO agents. Plasse, who was previously held in immigration detention in Arizona, was turned over to Brazilian authorities at Guarulhos International Airport in Sao Paulo the morning of Wednesday, June 27, 2012. She is charged in a criminal arrest warrant issued in April 2011 by a Brazilian federal judge related to a child trafficking investigation.

"Plasse's return to Brazil to face criminal charges is the result of close international cooperation between ICE personnel in Arizona, our ICE attaché staff in Brazil and Brazilian law enforcement," said Katrina S. Kane, field office director of ERO Phoenix. "ICE is committed to working closely with our law enforcement partners here and abroad to ensure these individuals are identified and brought to justice."

Plasse was first encountered by U.S. authorities January 12, 2011, when she was arrested by agents with the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson Sector after entering the U.S. illegally near Nogales. Plasse was subsequently issued a notice to appear before an immigration judge and transferred to ICE custody, where she was placed in immigration detention at the Eloy Detention Center while undergoing removal proceedings.

In April 2011, the ICE attaché office at the U.S. Embassy in Brasilia notified ICE officials in Arizona that Brazilian authorities had just issued an arrest warrant for Plasse related to a child trafficking investigation. Assistant Chief Counsel Ryan Goldstein from ICE's Office of the Chief Counsel Phoenix handled the ensuing immigration court litigation and in May 2012, an immigration judge with the Department of Justice's Executive Office for Immigration Review ordered Plasse deported.

Since Oct. 1, 2009, ERO has removed about 455 foreign fugitives from the United States who were being sought in their native countries for serious crimes, including kidnapping, rape and murder. ERO works with ICE's Office of International Affairs, foreign consular offices in the United States, and Interpol to identify foreign fugitives illegally present in the country.

ICE El Paso Unit a Center for Border Control

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent contacted the El Paso Intelligence Center to place a nationwide alert on a vehicle of interest. The next day, the special agent received notice on his BlackBerry that a camera at a southwest border port of entry had captured an image of the vehicle's license plate. Border authorities stopped the vehicle, which was en route to Mexico, because of the nationwide alert. They discovered and seized an array of weapons in the vehicle's trunk.

The El Paso Intelligence Center is an information focal point, collecting and analyzing interdiction reports and multi-source intelligence to identify and track trafficking activities and organizations, identify and fill intelligence gaps, and provide tactical intelligence to law enforcement officers in the field.

The multi-agency center is hosted by the Drug Enforcement Agency and has grown to include more than 26 federal, state, local, tribal and foreign enforcement agencies. Foreign partners include Mexico and Colombia.

Located within a stone's throw of the Mexican border – in El Paso, Texas – its mission is not limited to only border activity. In fact, its scope is vast, covering activity within the United States, on both sides of the U.S./Mexican border, across the Caribbean and from other points of origin within the Western Hemisphere.

"The center's mission evolved after Sept. 11 when then center's multi-agency environment was called upon to support terrorism investigations," said Louie Garcia, the center's deputy director and the first ICE employee to hold this position in the center's 38-year history. "The mission evolved from its experience in supporting interdiction efforts and investigating drug trafficking, alien, weapon and bulk currency smuggling by adding anti-terrorism to its efforts."
Garcia calls it an "all-threat center."

Its expansive network of systems and databases make it the go-to hub for investigators and officers alike.

At the core of the center's activities is the Watch Operations Section, where officers work around the clock, seven days a week to support officers and special agents who are actively engaged in enforcement activities and in need of immediate tactical information. Utilizing more than 70 federal, state and local databases, the staff has a wealth of critical information at its fingertips to assist at a moment's notice.

A Tuscaloosa County deputy sheriff recently relied on the center when he had a hunch that something wasn't right about a Texas-registered tractor trailer. He made a call to the center's Watch Operations Section, requesting a full search on two subjects, the trucking company and the trailer's license plate. Within minutes, the center's search revealed there was an active investigation by HSI on one of the subjects. Additionally during the search of the trailer, the deputy found $130,000 in U.S. currency tucked away in a false wall.

Having this type of background information at hand enables officers to make better decisions and enhance their safety measures.

Additionally, the center's Research and Analysis Section also offers valuable information. It provides statistical and trend information to case-specific research and analysis, both proactively and on a by-request basis.

"The center's mission, and the work conducted at the center, is vital to our national security," said Garcia.

ICE Detainee Collapses, Later Dies in Custody

A Mexican national who was hospitalized hours after coming into U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody last week was taken off life support the night of Monday, June 4, at a San Bernardino hospital following his parents' arrival from Mexico.

Juan Pablo Flores-Segura was rushed to Saint Bernardine Hospital May 29 after collapsing at ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) processing facility in San Bernardino. Physicians at the hospital determined the 31-year-old had suffered a brain hemorrhage. Doctors declared Flores brain dead May 31, but he was kept on life support until his parents could be paroled into the United States from Mexico to see him and meet with physicians.

Flores was turned over to ICE following his release from the San Bernardino County Jail where he had been detained since his arrest May 22 by the Victorville Police Department on battery charges. Less than four hours after the custody transfer, Flores was in a holding area at the ICE office waiting to be processed by ERO officers when he lost consciousness. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital.

An autopsy has been scheduled to confirm the cause of death. Consistent with ICE protocol, the appropriate state health and local law enforcement agencies have been informed. The ERO Los Angeles field office has been in close contact with Mexican consular representatives regarding the case.

Flores is the eighth detainee to pass away in ICE custody in fiscal year 2012.