SEATTLE MAN SENTENCED FOR CONCEALING AND HARBORING ILLEGAL ALIENS
Created phony documents to allow illegal aliens to get driver's licenses and ID cards


SEATTLE - A 58-year-old Seattle man who masterminded a scheme to aid Chinese nationals to illegally obtain driver's licenses and identity cards was sentenced today to six months of home confinement and three years probation for concealing and harboring illegal aliens.

Hsin-Hsun Hsu was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Ricardo S. Martinez on charges stemming from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). According to court records, Hsu ran a business known as WTS Travel. Through newspaper ads and word-of-mouth, Hsu offered to assist Chinese nationals with obtaining driver's licenses, and identification cards. Hsu was paid hundreds of dollars by Chinese nationals for his services. In order for the clients to show residency in Washington state, Hsu provided them with housing for days or weeks, and allowed them to use various addresses to apply for driver's licenses or ID cards. In one instance, 47 people used the address of the same three-bedroom Seattle home.

"We are very concerned about this type of criminal activity," said Leigh Winchell, special agent-in-charge for ICE investigations in Seattle. "Allowing individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States to gain an identity and access into legitimate commerce through fraudulent means is troubling."

According to the ICE agents, at times there were five to seven people residing in each of the various apartment units provided by Hsu. Some of the clients did not have legal status in the United States. Hsu knew of their undocumented status but chose to ignore it. He also provided fraudulent lease agreements as proof of residency for his clients to use in applying for licenses or identification at state offices.

The investigation began early last year when a Washington State Department of Licensing (DOL) employee alerted ICE that Hsu had been escorting large numbers of Chinese immigrants into various DOL locations in the King County area. The DOL does not require an applicant to have legal status in the United States to apply for an identification card or driver's license. Investigators observed Hsu assisting many immigrants who had entered the country illegally or had overstayed their visas.

Hsu pleaded guilty to the charges in October 2005.

http://www.ice.gov/graphics/news/newsre ... eattle.htm

What kind of Sentence is this, My goodness. No telling who he helped get into the country.