Thread: San Antonio eateries targeted on illegal workers

S.A. eateries targeted on illegal workers

by Guillermo Contreras - Express-News Web Posted: 09/16/2010 6:26 CDT

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In a rare criminal worksite enforcement case, a San Antonio restaurant company, its owner and four managers have been indicted on charges they conspired to hire illegal immigrants.
A phone tip by a fired employee in fall 2008 to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement brought a probe of Salsalito Cantina Inc., which has eateries in the 11700 block of Bandera Road and in the 14500 block of Nacogdoches Road, according to federal court affidavits.

After a two-year investigation, ICE agents and prosecutors convinced a federal grand jury Wednesday to indict the firm and its owner, Hossein Bagheri, 50; human resources manager Sylvia Luna, 33; general manager Humberto Gonzalez, 40; and kitchen manager Angel Sotelo, 44.

The eight-count indictment alleges they conspired to induce people to enter the United States illegally, hired them, completed fraudulent work verification documents and harbored and hid them.

The indictment alleges Bagheri instructed an employee to act as a lookout in the event of an inspection by law enforcement; that Sotelo instructed a job applicant to obtain false documents in order to gain employment with the company; and that Gonzalez and Luna both signed I-9 work verification forms attesting they had examined employment documents presented by job applicants when no such documents had been produced.

After serving two search warrants at the restaurants in summer 2009, agents detained and deported 20 undocumented workers.

“In my book, this is an egregious situation,â€

He said Salsalito is the first area employer to get charged criminally in the nearly six years he's been in San Antonio.

!!!!!! !!!!!!!! Unbelievable. A major city in Texas, a state on the border, and this is the first time in six years an illegal employer has been charged criminally. Have there been like 10 times more charged with misdemeanors?........which would then mean only 10 total in six years!!! And this one case took two years to investigate -- two years!!!

My gosh, no wonder the ego-centric, money-hungry illegal employers continue. Getting caught and punished enough is the only thing that will stop them, not principles. And they're not being caught and punished, except for one every few years...........Ha ha ha ha.........

Plea deal reached in illegal hiring case

by Guillermo Contreras

Web Posted: 11/12/2010 5:05 PM CST

A former kitchen manager for Salsalito Cantina Inc. pleaded guilty Friday to a misdemeanor charge of employing illegal workers as part of a deal in which the government dismissed a separate felony conspiracy count.
Court records show Carlos Cossio Mendoza cooperated with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which raided Salsalito's two locations in May 2009 as part of a worksite enforcement case that produced a rare indictment of the restaurant, its owner Hossein Bagheri, and three other employees.

A phone tip by a fired employee in 2008 led ICE agents to the restaurants, where they arrested and eventually deported 20 workers who were illegally in the United States, according to federal court affidavits.

Cossio initially was charged with employing illegal workers and conspiracy to commit fraud by helping an informant posing as an illegal immigrant get a phony green card.

With Cossio's plea before Chief U.S. District Judge Fred Biery, the conspiracy charge was dismissed and Cossio was sentenced to the nearly two months he'd already spent in jail.

In September, a federal grand jury indicted the restaurant; Bagheri, 50; human resources manager Sylvia Luna, 33; general manager Humberto Gonzalez, 40; and kitchen manager Angel Sotelo, 44.

The eight-count indictment alleges they conspired to induce people to enter the United States illegally, completed fraudulent work verification documents and then hired, harbored and hid them.

Salsalito is the first area employer to get charged criminally over alleged immigration violations in at least six years.

The indictment alleges Bagheri instructed an employee to act as a lookout in the event of an inspection by law enforcement, that Sotelo instructed a job applicant to obtain false documents in order to gain employment with the company and that Gonzalez and Luna both signed I-9 work verification forms attesting they had examined employment documents presented by job applicants when no such documents had been produced.

Officials allege Bagheri went to extremes to hide illegal immigrants and even paid the smuggling fees for a worker to return after he was deported.

Bagheri, Sotelo Gonzalez and Luna have pleaded not guilty. The defendants face up to 10 years in prison, while the company faces fines of up to $500,000 per violation

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