In the United States began to arrest businessmen who hire illegal immigrants

A federal law enforcement raid that resulted in the arrest of 147 people has become one of the largest national security investigations in the 15-year history.

Photo: twitter.com/icegov

The raid was carried out at the enterprises of the Midwest, which, according to officials, deliberately hired and mistreated illegal immigrants.

Compared to previous raids, where illegal immigrants were arrested, this time the focus was on entrepreneurs, although illegal immigrants were also detained.

“The investigation was launched largely because we knew these companies were defrauding these workers, taxpayers and competitors,” said Special Agent in Charge Tracy J. Cormier, who oversees Nebraska and Minnesota.

ICE agents conducted operations in Nebraska and Minnesota, where about a dozen enterprises and factories were registered, and 17 business owners and managers were charged with fraud and money laundering.

Of these, 14 was taken into custody on Wednesday, and three were still wanted. Authorities also arrested more than 130 workers at various businesses, sending them to Grand Island, Nebraska, for questioning.

“Operating in the United States is what attracts illegal aliens to cross our borders in the first place,” Cormier said in a statement posted on the ICE website. “This criminal investigation, led by HSI, has revealed that these companies knowingly hire illegal workers to illegally line their own pockets, defrauding workers, defrauding taxpayers, and defrauding their business competitors.”

According to her, companies use fictitious names and social security numbers for the illegal use of people in the country. Cormier said businesses used “force, fraud, coercion, the threat of arrest and / or deportation” to exploit workers. Officials said that the entrepreneur who hired immigrants also paid part-time wages, withholding taxes from wages that he did not transfer to the government.

Most arrests occurred in northern Neraski and southern Minnesota.

Some of the businesses were located in O'Neill, Nebraska, which is located approximately 160 miles (257 km) northwest of Omaha.

According to ICE, during the operation, an 133 employee who was suspected of illegal stay in the country was also arrested. Some of them will be given a subpoena to the immigration court and released, while those with a criminal past will remain in custody.

Illegal hiring is rarely prosecuted, in part because the investigation takes a lot of time and the charges are difficult to prove because employers can claim to have been deceived by submitting fake documents to intermediaries. Sometimes the size of administrative fines can be equated to the value of the entire business.

The most aggressive policy against employers who illegally hire workers was conducted by the George W. Bush administration. In 2008, agents arrived by helicopter at a meat factory Agriprocessors in Postville, Iowa, and detained around 400 workers.

The Obama administration doubled the number of employer checks, increasing them to 3100, and also significantly increased the size of fines.

The Trump administration is pursuing "its own unique strategy," emphasizing the fight against illegal immigration. During the operation, agents arrest illegal immigrants, but the main goal for them is employers who hire people who illegally entered the country.

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