Thread: Charges in Illegal Alien Case

http://www.kxmc.com/news/local.asp?ID=5060

May 3, 2006

Charges in Illegal Alien Case

(AP) _ The owner of an Indiana construction company has been charged in North Dakota with using illegal immigrants in his stucco business.

A 12-count federal indictment accuses Robert Porcisanu of harboring and transporting illegal immigrants, as well as money laundering. He faces up to 40 years in prison -- and may have to forfeit up to one-point-five million dollars.

Porcisanu made his initial court appearance in Indiana last month.

Authorities say Porcisanu hired illegal immigrants to work at construction sites in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio.

Prosecutors say Porcisanu is a 28-year-old Romanian who used a fraudulent immigrant visa to get a Social Security number, incorporate his construction company and hire illegal workers.

The investigation began after the North Dakota Highway Patrol stopped a truck for a traffic violation near Fargo last October. Prosecutors say four men in the truck were illegal immigrants who had been working on a Wal-Mart store in Dickinson.

We need to see more and more of this, need to put the fear of americans into these illegals

Found a better article with more information.


http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a ... 006/NEWS01


May 3, 2006


Feds say Franklin man hired illegal immigrants
Arraignment in multistate case is today

By Maureen Groppe
Star Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- The owner of a Franklin, Ind., construction company who may himself be in the country illegally has been charged with hiring, transporting and housing illegal immigrants in multiple states, according to a federal indictment unsealed this week in North Dakota.

Robert Adrian Porcisanu, a Romanian citizen who federal authorities say lied about his resident status, faces 12 criminal counts connected to his operation of Stucco Design.

The charges come on the heels of a sweeping crackdown in recent weeks on what immigration officials say are numerous companies that hire illegal workers. Federal agents raided offices and arrested people in at least nine states, including dozens in Indianapolis.

The Franklin construction company is run out of a modest blue house at 1452 Natalie Court, according to incorporation papers on file with the Indiana secretary of state's office.

If convicted, Porcisanu could face up to 40 years in prison. The government will also try to recover $1.5 million it says the company earned through illegal activity.

Porcisanu, 28, who is also known as Iulian Jijie, plans to plead not guilty when he is arraigned in Fargo, N.D., today, according to his lawyer.

Attorney Robert Ratliff said he would have more to say after he is able to review the government's case.

Immigration officials originally detained Porcisanu in March, pulling him from the Franklin house. The arrest, according to Ratliff, was on issues "related to his immigration status." Porcisanu is in the custody of federal marshals in the Fargo area on charges tied to Stucco Design.

Neighbor Vicki Webster said she was home the morning Porcisanu was arrested and watched the event unfold. She said she was shocked to learn that Porcisanu was charged with hiring and housing illegal immigrants.

"I've never seen any illegal aliens come and go," Webster said.
Porcisanu, she said, was very private. The house, which he and an unidentified woman moved into about a year ago, is now for sale.

A man who answered the door Tuesday at the Franklin home said Porcisanu was not there. He identified himself as a house sitter and refused to give his name.

Porcisanu and Stucco Design won contracts by undercutting competitors through lower bids that were possible because they knowingly hired workers who were in the United States illegally, according to the indictment.

The government alleges Porcisanu used false information to obtain a Social Security card for himself, a federal Employer Identification Number and bank accounts.

The company advertised in Spanish-language newspapers for construction workers for whom they did not pay overtime or withhold taxes, according to the indictment.

"Illegal immigrants are an exploitable work force because they view themselves as an underground economy,' said John Keeley, director of communications at the Center for Immigration Studies, an independent research organization.

Although Stucco Design hasn't been charged with worker harassment, local activists say employers often take undue advantage of illegal employees.

"It makes me sick to my stomach," said Veronica Guerrero, an Indianapolis activist for Hispanics. "I have seen so many undocumented people being exploited in so many ways."

The company arranged for transportation for the workers and paid for hotel rooms near construction sites in seven states, including Indiana, according to the indictment.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement got involved in October after the North Dakota Highway Patrol stopped a truck for a traffic violation and asked the Border Patrol to help identify the four men in the truck.
The men, who had been working at construction site for a Wal-Mart Super Center in Dickinson, N.D., told Border Patrol agents that Stucco Design had hired them without requiring documents to show they were in the country legally, according to the indictment.

The four workers have since been deported to Mexico.
The government charges that Porcisanu attempted to conceal his activities by refusing to respond to a federal grand jury subpoena and by instructing others not to cooperate, either.

"Employers who take advantage of illegal labor to gain a competitive advantage for their own profit will be identified, arrested and prosecuted," said Julie L. Myers, Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The charges Porcisanu faces include money laundering, harboring and transporting illegal aliens and making false statements.


Star reporters Erika D. Smith and Madhusmita Bora contributed to this story.

Contact Star Washington Bureau reporter Maureen Groppe at (202) 906-8118 or mgroppe@gns.gannett.com

http://www.wlns.com/Global/story.asp?S=4860998&nav=0RbQ

Judge orders evaluation for man charged in immigrant scheme


FARGO, N.D. A mental health evaluation has been ordered for a man accused of hiring illegal immigrants to work in North Dakota, Michigan and other states.

Robert Porcisanu (por-chi-SAH'-noh) didn't respond to questions during his arraignment in Fargo. He faces up to 40 years in prison, if convicted.

Porcisanu is charged with money laundering, making false statements and conspiracy to harbor and transport illegal aliens. Prosecutors say he's a 28-year-old Romanian citizen.

Authorities say Porcisanu ran a stucco business and transported workers to construction sites in Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

So what is he now going for mental incompetancy? Gimmee a break, he knew how to get into this country illegally and knew how to setup an illegal business and bank accounts and take advantage of illegal aliens by hiring them. He should forfeit all profits made from this illegal enterprise of his. We could use those monies to enforce our border from the likes of this guy and his employees.

http://www.westfargopioneer.com/article ... ction=News

Man, business guilty of conspiring to harbor illegal aliens
West Fargo Pioneer
Published Friday, December 01, 2006

The owner of a sub-contracting business that by hiring illegal aliens was able undercut the bids of the competition was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Fargo Thursday, Nov. 30.


Robert Adrian Porcisanu, a.k.a Iulian Jijie, 28, a citizen of Romania, pleaded guilty on behalf of himself and the business entity he incorporated, Stucco Design, Inc., for operating a construction subcontracting business that performed stucco-related work all over the United States, primarily with illegal alien employees.


Judge Ralph Erickson sentence Porcisanu/Jijie to 18 months imprisonment along with a $100 special assessment for Porcisanu/Jijie and $100 special assessment for Stucco Design, Inc. Porcisanu/Jijie also agreed to the forfeiture of approximately $1.5 million in bank accounts that were seized by law enforcement during the investigation.


The prosecution stems from a traffic stop made by the North Dakota Highway Patrol near Fargo on Oct. 26, 2005. When officers determined that the four men in the truck could not speak English, they contacted the U.S. Border Patrol in Grand Forks for assistance. Border Patrol agents responded and arrested the men on charges of being in the U.S. illegally.


All four illegal aliens were employees of Stucco Design, Inc., and had been working in Dickinson, N.D., at a construction site for a Wal-Mart Supercenter. All four men told Border Patrol agents that when Stucco Design, Inc., hired them, they did not complete required paperwork, and did not show documents to establish they were eligible to work legally in the U.S., as required by law. They also stated that their basses knew they were in the country illegally.


Agents of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted a several-month investigation and were able to establish that Porcisanu/Jijie and Stucco Design, Inc., were able to undercut the bids of competitors and win contracts by hiring illegal aliens and taking advantage of cheaper labor costs.


“This was a significant case for us because it is important for us to deter and take away the economic incentive to hire illegal workers,” stated Assistant U.S. Attorney Nick Chase. “In addition to the jail time, it was particularly important for us to forfeit over 95 percent of the funds that were in the corporate and personal bank accounts of the defendants.”