Grocer faces illegal hiring charge Posted: March 30, 2011 - 3:16pm


By The Associated Press
WICHITA — A Wichita grocery store owner has been indicted on a charge of knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant.

The new indictment made public Wednesday is the latest legal problem for Ahmed Ajami Al-Maleki, owner of Kansas Food Market. Al-Maleki was indicted March 1 on unrelated fraud charges of trading cash for customer food stamps at a profit.

The government now contends Al-Maleki had been paying an illegal immigrant her wages in cash and began paying her with a business check after he was charged in the food stamp case. But the check had no withholdings for state or federal income taxes or Social Security. Al-Maleki allegedly cashed the check when the woman could not cash it at a bank without identification.

Defense lawyer Kurt Kerns says Al-Maleki is innocent of all the charges,

http://cjonline.com/news/state/2011-03- ... ing-charge