Originally published Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at 1:07 PM

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Guilty pleas expected from Wash. immigration raid

Guilty pleas are expected from two members of the family who owns a Washington state manufacturing company where 28 people were arrested in a February immigration raid.

SEATTLE —
Guilty pleas are expected from two members of the family who owns a Washington state manufacturing company where 28 people were arrested in a February immigration raid.

Federal prosecutors filed criminal charges Monday accusing Yamato Engines Specialists of knowingly hiring illegal immigrants.

Shirin Dhanani Makalai and Shafique Dhanani are scheduled to appear in federal court in Seattle Tuesday afternoon.

The company was charged with conspiring to encourage undocumented immigrants to remain in the United States between 2006 and 2009. Prosecutors also charged Makalai and Dhanani with allowing undocumented workers to file false employment forms with the government.

The raid at Yamato was the first since President Barack Obama took office and attracted national attention. Obama had signaled a desire to stop arresting workers in mass immigration raids and instead focus on prosecuting the companies that hired them.


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