News Releases and Statements
News Releases and Statements
Wen Ping Chen, 30, of Rio Rancho, New Mexico, and his brother Wen Qiu Chen, 31, of Santa Fe, were also ordered to forfeit a residence located on Aztec Court in Rio Rancho that was used to facilitate the Chens’ criminal conduct. Although the amount of restitution to be paid by the Chen brothers will be determined at a later date, the court noted that the restitution order will be at least $120,000.
Under the settlement agreement, Broetje Orchards does not admit to any criminal wrongdoing, but does acknowledge HSI auditors found that it continued to employ unauthorized workers after being advised by ICE those employees did not have permission to work in the United States.
Hiral Patel, 32, and Shikha Mohta, 31, both of Jersey City, New Jersey, were charged with one count each of conspiracy to bring in and harbor aliens, and to obstruct justice.
Thomas Wright and Daniel Dreckmann, owners of Wright Construction Services Inc., signed an agreement with ICE May 6 making their company a full member of the IMAGE program.
Ming Guo, 46, of North Miami Beach, Florida, owner of two Twin Cities restaurants named Hibachi Grill and Supreme Buffet, and Bijian Went (aka Wilson) 28, of Spring Lake Park, Minnesota, and manager of the restaurants, each entered guilty pleas on one charge of knowingly hiring 10 or more illegal aliens. The two were charged with the crime Jan. 26.
Keith L. Countess, 55, of Lawrence, Kansas, and five others were charged via a federal indictment alleging they were part of a scheme to convert more than $13 million in payroll checks into cash to pay crews of undocumented workers installing drywall in the Kansas City metro area.
Rhonda R. Bridge, 42, of Overland Park, Kansas, was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for employing illegal aliens, who were paid less than other employees. In addition to her prison sentence, Bridge also agreed to forfeit her interest in two hotels and the funds derived from the crime.
GKI Foods LLC of Brighton, has pledged to protect the integrity of their workforce by joining IMAGE. The partnership was marked Friday by an official signing at the company’s headquarters.
Lina Sun, 55, and Chenglun Ma, 58, were sentenced Feb. 5 by Judge Thad Heartfield for the racketeering influenced and corrupt organizations (RICO) conspiracy. Sun and Ma were sentenced to 18 months and 13 months in federal prison, respectively.
Hyperikon Inc. is the 17th San Diego-area business to become an IMAGE member. IMAGE is a voluntary partnership that helps employers maintain a lawful workforce and reduce unauthorized employment and the use of fraudulent identity documents.
Simpson Unlimited was founded in 1992 and currently employs approximately 125 individuals. The company handles construction projects ranging from simple repairs to multimillion dollar contracts. Some of the company’s largest projects include: the Rayburn House and Senate Building, the Ritz Carlton in Tysons Corner and the Freer Gallery of Art.
McCain Inc., which began operations in 1987, is the 16th San Diego-area business to become an IMAGE member. IMAGE is a voluntary partnership that helps employers maintain a lawful workforce and reduce unauthorized employment and the use of fraudulent identity documents.
Raymond Scott Vincent, 47, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, was sentenced to two days in prison followed by 60 days of home confinement as part of 18 months of probation. Judge Paul W. Grimm also ordered Vincent to perform 80 hours of community service, pay a fine of $36,000 and forfeit $42,262.60.
Company owner Daniel Lewis “Danny” Hendon, 64, of Paradise Valley, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Neil V. Wake to 12 months in prison followed by a year of home confinement. Hendon also agreed to divest himself of any future ownership, managerial or profit-sharing interest in the DFC organization.
IMAGE is a nationwide program that assists employers, strengthens hiring practices and curtails the employment of unauthorized workers through outreach, education and partnership.
The 2.66-mile speedway became an ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers (IMAGE) partner during a ceremony at the track. IMAGE is a voluntary program that allows private industry to partner with ICE to reduce unauthorized employment and the use of fraudulent identity documents.
Durable Inc., located in Wheeling, Illinois, manufactures aluminum products for retail and food-service customers.
As part of this agreement, Santa Rosa County School District, Colorado Boxed Beef Company and its 3 subsidiaries: ATG Transportation LLC, PREFCO Distribution LLC and The Great Fish Company LLC, have pledged to maintain a secure and stable workforce and curtail the employment of unauthorized workers through outreach and education.
The owner of two Chinese restaurants in the Kansas City area pleaded guilty Monday to conspiring to employ and harbor illegal alien workers, announced U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom, District of Kansas.
The 25 companies officially became members of ICE's Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers (IMAGE) Thursday during the largest IMAGE signing ceremony since inception of the program.
When sentenced, Farrukh Baig, 58, of Head of Harbor, New York and Malik Yousaf, 52, of South Setauket, New York face up to 20 years’ imprisonment, and Bushra Baig, 50, of Head of Harbor, New York, Shahnawaz Baig, 63, of Virginia Beach, Virginia and Zahid Baig, 53, of Chesapeake, Virginia face up to 10 years’ imprisonment.
IMAGE stands for ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers. As part of this agreement, Titania has pledged to maintain a secure and stable workforce and curtail the employment of unauthorized workers through outreach and education.
The Sinclair Services Company subsidiary, which operates hotel and resort properties in Utah, Wyoming, Arizona, California, and Idaho, will avoid criminal prosecution in exchange for its full cooperation with HSI’s investigation and taking action to correct its hiring practices.
Quan Liu, 26, of Kansas City, Missouri, pleaded guilty Sept. 9 to one count of conspiring to harbor aliens who were in the United States illegally.
Ecotex is the fourth employer in New Mexico to become a full IMAGE partner. There are more than 250 IMAGE partners throughout the United States.
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