Atlanta, GAA number of individuals have been charged with Georgia employment violations stemming from the importation and use of illegal aliens for restaurant jobs.
In a release dated 6/4/10 through States News Service, the Atlanta office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) revealed the circumstances and the charges laid against five individuals from the state of Georgia. Indicted were Pili Chen, 55, of Tucker, Georgia; Ai Lin Fu, 40, of Norcross, Georgia; Chun Yan Lin, 44, of Chamblee, Georgia; Xiang Meike, 32, of Duluth, Georgia; and Jing Xing Jiang, 42, of Lawrenceville, Georgia.
In a statement, United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates noted that a joint investigation by the FBI and the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) yielded the intelligence necessary to warrant the charges.
According to the FBI / ICE investigation, Chun Yan Lin, Ai Lin Fu and Pili Chen were found to own employment agencies that conspired with other parties to identify prospects through advertising online and in Asian newspapers. They then allegedly conspired to transport these workers to the US without request or requirement for proof of citizenship or permission to work in the US.
The undocumented aliens were charged a commission and a transportation fee.
Workers were often housed in the homes of restaurant owners and transported privately between their place of residence and place of employment in an effort to avoid detection.
The promised jobs involved long shifts spanning six-day weeks, predominantly at Chinese restaurants. Compensation was often substandard, and workers took home even less after deductions to facilitate the reimbursement of costs and commissions to the illegal employment agencies.
Workers were also paid in cash to avoid the payment of taxes, unemployment insurance and workers compensation premiums.
In so doing, the indicted perpetrators were allegedly exploiting workers who came into the country illegally.
All defendants face federal charges of conspiring to induce undocumented aliens to enter and remain in the US by providing them with employment. Ai Lin Fu faces additional charges of transporting aliens for the purpose of commercial advantage and private financial gain in reckless disregard of the fact that the aliens were in the US and remained here in violation of the law. This joint ICE / FBI investigation continues.
The conspiracy and transportation charges carry a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
During the joint operation on June 3, 39 individuals were detained by ICE for being in the US without documentation. Their cases are expected to be handled administratively and they are expected to be deported back to their countries of origin.
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