Thread: Reno McDonald's executives sentenced in illegal immigrant sc

Reno McDonald's executives sentenced in illegal immigrant scheme

By Frank X. Mullen Jr. • fmullen@rgj.com • November 20, 2008


One current and one former top executive for the firm that owns 11 McDonald's restaurants in and around Reno have been sentenced to three years of probation in a case involving the systematic employment of illegal immigrant workers for more than a decade.
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Documents based on an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show that executives of Mack Associates had a "scheme" they called "good papers" in which the company knowingly hired illegal immigrant workers and in some cases provided them with false identities.

Sometimes, the fake identities were of living or dead acquaintances of the firm's workers, the documents show.

U.S. District Court Judge James Mahan last week sentenced Jimmy Moore, 47, the franchisee's former vice president, to three years of probation and 40 hours of community service after he pleaded guilty to one felony count of inducing an illegal immigrant to remain in the United States.

Mahan sentenced Joe Gillespie, 53, of Sparks, director of operations for Mack Associates Inc., to three years of probation after he pleaded guilty to one felony count of aiding and abetting an alien to remain in the United States.

Previously, two key employees were sentenced to 90 hours of community service and fined $1,000 in the case. Anntoinette Richmond, 44, the corporation's controller, and Teresa Theiss, 36, a former payroll clerk for the firm, pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of continuing employment of an unauthorized alien.

The sentences were part of a plea agreement under which Mack Associates paid $1 million and was placed on probation for one year.

Luther Mack, owner of Mack Associates, was not charged. At the time of the raids, Mack said he followed immigration laws when hiring workers. Shortly after that, he declined to comment on the advice of his lawyer.

Mack did not return calls from the newspaper Wednesday.

The plea agreements and documents filed in the case show the firm engaged in a system of hiring illegal immigrants and supplying them with false identities in an effort to retain long-term employees, especially restaurant managers.

Inside the firm, the scheme was known as "good papers," court documents said.

The case came to light in September 2007 when ICE agents executed federal search warrants at the 11 McDonald's restaurants and arrested 58 illegal immigrants working at the sites.

At least 30 have been deported. Others await deportation or remain in the country with documentation, ICE officials said.

Nevada U.S. Attorney Gregory Brower and Julie L. Myers, Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for ICE, have said the Mack case should serve as a reminder to employers that knowingly hiring illegal immigrants violates federal law, violations will be prosecuted and criminal penalties can be significant.
http://www.rgj.com/article/20081120/NEW ... /1321/NEWS

I have noticed some changes in some of my MCDonalds. They actually speack English without an accent. I even said how happy I was to see these changes coming as I have written MCDonalds several times complaining that my order was never right as they couldn't understand my order if I ordered anything other than a hamberger. I ordered 2 dozen cookies at one time and they had to have 3 people talk to me and I still didn't get my order right.

Someone please send these agents to the McD's in Zion, IL