Pizzeria owner admits hiring illegal workers, but felony case dropped
By Matt O'Brien

Posted: 08/31/2009 03:47:57 PM PDT
Updated: 08/31/2009 05:11:02 PM PDT


HAYWARD — Prosecutors have dropped felony charges against a pizzeria owner they had accused of harboring illegal immigrants at his Hayward restaurant.

Glenio Silva, owner of the Pizza House, pleaded guilty Thursday to the lesser charge of hiring illegal workers.

Judge Jeffrey White compared the case to an elephant that was downgraded to a mouse, and sentenced Silva to two weeks in jail and a $2,500 fine. Silva also faces five years of probation.

"The government thought they had this huge alien smuggler in Mr. Silva," said Steve Gruel, the restaurateur's lawyer. "Basically, they got it wrong."

Federal agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement raided Silva's restaurants in Hayward and San Francisco in June 2007. They arrested him and some of his employees who were Brazilians living and working in the country illegally.

Silva let some of the workers live above his restaurants, which he attributed to his generosity but authorities said showed he was exploiting an illegal workforce.

The agency accused Silva of paying the workers cash to conceal their illegal employment and to avoid paying payroll taxes.

The investigation was sparked by tips by Silvano Santos, a former manager at Monterey Pizza restaurant in San Francisco. Silva had recently fired Santos, who is also an illegal immigrant, after accusing him of stealing money.

Gruel said many of Santos' claims were wrong. Gruel said Silva had nothing to do
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with the bogus documents that illegal workers acquired to find work at his business.


Although Silva is a legal immigrant, the five felony charges against him could have jailed him for years and led to deportation.

Prosecutors felt the plea agreement was appropriate, said Jack Gillund, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office. Gruel, a former federal prosecutor, portrayed the raids as unfair, since illegal immigrants are employed by small and large-scale businesses throughout the region and rarely are the employers saddled with federal investigations.

"I hope we see a fairer application of the law as opposed to going for the low-hanging fruit," Gruel said. "Mr. Silva was an easy target."

Both the Bush administration and the Obama administration promised crackdowns on employers who profit from keeping illegal workers, but prosecutors often find pursuing criminal cases against employers difficult.

The raid on Silva's restaurants was one of a handful of high-profile raids in recent years targeting Bay Area workplaces that employ illegal immigrants



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