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3 ET BUSINESSES ACCUSED OF SWINDLING
IMMIGRANTS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS
By: MARK COLLETTE, Staff Writer April 05, 2005

The attorney general has shut down three businesses in Smith, Gregg and Van Zandt counties, accusing their owners of swindling thousands of dollars from hundreds of unwary Mexican immigrants, who were looking for legal help.

In lawsuits filed in these counties, the attorney general claims the businesses used false advertising, misleading titles, and gave unauthorized legal advice. In the worst cases, these actions led to the deportation of families who might have been able to obtain legal immigrant status, a spokesman for the attorney general said.

In telephone interviews on Tuesday, at least two of the businesses said they committed no violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and suggested the investigations were spurred by other immigration service providers trying to wipe out competition.

Named in the lawsuits are Nilsa and Samuel Avila of Tyler, doing business as Mundo Latino on State Highway 31 East in Smith County; Neal Nevejans of Immigration Services in Ben Wheeler; and Josue Avila and Robert Kolk of Status Social Services in Kilgore. Judges have issued orders to halt the businesses and freeze their assets.

Attorney General Greg Abbott has won similar cases across the state after vowing in 2003 to crackdown on unscrupulous businesses that target areas with surging immigrant populations. The businesses at the center of the three most recent lawsuits have some of the closest ties to local immigrant populations of any targeted by Abbott so far, according to immigration attorneys familiar with the businesses.

Samuel Avila was among the businessmen mentioned by sources in a March 9, 2003, Tyler Morning Telegraph feature about proliferating scams in East Texas.

He was the subject of a March 2002 letter from federal immigration officials to the Board of Immigration Appeals, opposing Avila's application for accreditation. Only attorneys, supervised law students and people accredited by the board may represent consumers on immigration matters, according to the attorney general.

The letter said Avila, who is not a lawyer, was the "subject of investigation by several local unauthorized practice of law committees" for claiming to be a licensed attorney. Abbott's lawsuit claims Avila provided legal advice and services without proper qualifications.

Avila declined to comment when asked about the lawsuit on Tuesday.

Amador Garcia, acting director of Status Social Services, dismissed the claims against his business, which he said is actually a nonprofit organization.

"We specifically notify all of our members that we are not licensed attorneys, we do not provide legal advice, and we do not provide legal representation," Garcia said.

He said Status Social Services primarily offers help with "compilation, completion, translation, interpreting of their (immigrants') personal documents or paperwork ... We can help with whatever they bring us, but we do not advise them or represent them."

He said the attorney general's investigation is misguided, based on complaints of others "who see us as a threat, and competition."

But Abbott spokesman Paco Felici said the people named in the lawsuits "have not only taken vast sums of money and done very little or nothing to advance the cases of their clients ... but in the worst of cases, they have put the legal (immigration) status of those clients in peril, because they file forms incorrectly or miss critical deadlines required under federal immigration law."

Felici said the attorney general relies on immigrant advocacy groups, churches and foreign consulates to glean reports of fraudulent immigration consultants.

Nevejans, who is accused of advising immigrants while defunct immigration credentials hung on his office walls in Ben Wheeler, called the complaints "fabricated."

"I fill out immigration forms," Nevejans said. "I don't give legal advice. I have no advertising. I don't purport to be a lawyer."

He said most of his business involves handling tax forms, and that he had actually helped to stem the tide of immigration scams in East Texas.

"I'm sorry to hear that the attorney general has gotten involved in it," he said.

By contrast, Garcia said that even though Status Social Services is the subject of a lawsuit, he thinks Abbott is doing right by trying to crack down on fraud. He looks forward to disputing the allegations.

"I would just like to tell our members not to hold any judgment until we have a court hearing and prove our side of the story," he said.

In July 2004, a federal judge sentenced an East Texas scam leader to more than eight years in prison for bilking undocumented immigrants. Maria Elena Garza, 53, of Kemp masqueraded as a federal immigration employee and collected more than $160,000 from victims. She once ran an "immigration services" office in Tyler.

Felici declined to say whether the attorney general has found evidence of criminal wrongdoing in its investigation of the Kilgore, Ben Wheeler and Smith County organizations. He said any evidence of criminal wrongdoing would be handed over to the Smith County district attorney. In the lawsuits, the organizations would be subject to civil penalties if found in violation of the Deceptive Trade Practices act.

A hearing in the case against Nilsa and Samuel Avila is set for April 11 in the 7th District Court in Smith County; a hearing in the Nevejans case is set for April 15 in the 294th District Court in Van Zandt County; and a hearing in the Status Social Services case is set for April 8 in the 124th District Court in Gregg County.

Watchdogs say fraudulent immigration consulting goes largely unchecked because many immigrants refuse to report fraud in the face of language barriers and fears of deportation.

Before paying someone to process immigration documents, consumers can call the Texas State Bar at (800) 932-1900 to verify the person is a licensed attorney.

Some nonprofit organizations are also authorized to handle immigration matters. They can be verified through the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Mark Collette covers Smith County. He can be reached at 903.596.6303. e-mail: news@tylerpaper.com