Thread: Iowa Meatpacker Fined $10 Million after raid

Iowa meatpacker fined $10M after immigration raid

Posted 10m ago

DES MOINES (AP) — Iowa on Wednesday fined a kosher meatpacking plant that was targeted by a federal immigration raid nearly $10 million for alleged violations of state labor laws.

Labor Commissioner Dave Neil assessed the civil penalties against Agriprocessors in Postville for what he called repeated violations of Iowa's wage laws from January 2006 to June 2008.

The alleged violations included illegally deducting sales tax and miscellaneous costs, and failing to pay dozens of workers their last paycheck after the May raid by federal immigration agents.

The civil penalties total more than $9.9 million.

An Agriprocessors spokesman didn't immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

Also on Wednesday, a human resources employee of Agriprocessors changed her plea to guilty for her role in helping illegal workers use false documents to work at the plant.

Laura Althouse, 38, of Postville, appeared in federal court in Cedar Rapids to enter her plea to charges of conspiracy to harbor undocumented immigrants for financial gain and aggravated identity theft. She originally faced the conspiracy charge as well as charges of aiding and abetting document fraud and aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft.

Her lawyer didn't immediately respond to calls seeking comment.

The U.S. attorneys office said Althouse remains free on bail pending sentencing, which will scheduled after a presentence investigation report is completed. She faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the conspiracy charge, and up to two years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the aggravated identity theft .
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Took a while, lets see what the pay after the dust settles.

These fines are not by the federal government for immigration violations they are by the state for labor law violations.
At least someone is going after the employers big time.

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

These fines are not by the federal government for immigration violations they are by the state for labor law violations.
At least someone is going after the employers big time.

I AM GLAD THE STATE HAS DONE THIS...BUT I ALSO WANT TO SEE SOME PROSECUTION BY THE FEDS. I ALSO WANT TO SEE SOME JAIL TIME FOR THE OWNERS. I DON'T CARE HOW MANY MILLIONS OR BILLIONS THEY ARE FINED....JAIL TIME IS A MUST.

Close them down and use the money from the fines to entice a new company to come in and hire legal workers.

I.C.E. News Release

Oct. 30, 2008

ICE arrests former Agriprocessors CEO

Rubashkin is charged with conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens, document fraud, identity theft

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - The former CEO of Agriprocessors Inc., was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents Thursday and charged with criminal violations of immigration law. The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Matt M. Dummermuth, Northern District of Iowa.

Sholom Rubashkin, 49, of Postville, Iowa, is charged with conspiring to harbor illegal aliens for profit, aiding and abetting document fraud, and aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft. The charges are contained in a complaint filed today in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids.

The complaint alleges that the week before a May 12, 2008, ICE enforcement operation at Agriprocessors in Postville, Rubashkin - then the CEO of Agriprocessors - loaned $4,500 in $100 bills to employees who were known to have bad identification documents. Agriprocessors supervisors later allegedly distributed money to illegal alien employees so that they could purchase new, fake lawful permanent resident cards ("green cards") under different names.

The complaint says an Agriprocessors foreman arranged the purchase of the documents, and that Rubashkin allegedly asked human resources employees to work Sunday afternoon, May 11, to complete new application paperwork for several people. According to the complaint, approximately 96 fake permanent resident cards and application paperwork were seized from the human resources offices the following day. The complaint alleges that approximately 90 of the fake permanent resident cards contained resident alien numbers that were assigned to other people. The following day ICE agents arrested 389 illegal alien workers at Agriprocessors.

Rubashkin was arrested this morning without incident at his home in Postville by ICE agents and appeared this afternoon in federal court in Cedar Rapids. He was released on the conditions that he wear a GPS ankle bracelet, limit his travel to the Northern District of Iowa, surrender his and his wife's passport, and provide a $1 million appearance bond with $500,000 to be secured by Nov. 5, 2008. Rubashkin waived his right to a preliminary hearing and the case was bound over for consideration by a grand jury.

If convicted, Rubashkin faces a possible maximum penalty on the conspiracy charge of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and three years of supervised release. On the document fraud charge, he faces a possible maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and three years of supervised release. On the aggravated identity theft charge, he faces a mandatory consecutive two years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and one year of supervised release.

As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Peter Deegan, C.J. Williams and Matthew Cole, and was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

Last Modified: Thursday, October 30, 2008
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

http://www.ice.gov/pi/nr/0810/081030cedarrapids.htm