WASHINGTON — Immigration agents arrested seven executives and hundreds of employees of a manufacturer of crates and pallets Wednesday as part of a crackdown on employers of illegal entrants.
Authorities raided offices and plants of IFCO Systems in Arizona and at least seven other states in the culmination of a yearlong criminal investigation, law enforcement officials said.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested seven current and former IFCO Systems managers on charges that they conspired to transport and harbor illegal immigrants and encourage them to live in the United States for commercial advantage and private financial gain, said Glenn T. Suddaby, the chief federal prosecutor in Albany, N.Y., where some arrests were made.
ICE spokeswoman Jamie Zuieback confirmed an unspecified number of raids and arrests, but she would not provide additional details because the investigation was continuing.
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Raids took place at several locations in upstate New York and in Biglerville, Pa.; Charlotte, N.C.; Cincinnati; Houston; Phoenix; Richmond, Va.; and Westborough, Mass.
The raid in west Phoenix resulted in 30 arrests. Officials in Phoenix would not provide any details. A helicopter from the federal agency hovered overhead during the Phoenix raid, and authorities could be seen hauling away van loads of people.
"ICE has no tolerance for corporate officers who harbor illegal aliens for their work force," ICE chief Julie Myers said. "Today's nationwide enforcement actions show how we will use all our investigative tools to bring these individuals to justice, no matter how large or small their company."
She and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff are expected today to lay out an immigration enforcement strategy that targets employers' disregard for immigration law.
Immigration analysts and many politicians have given the government poor marks for not cracking down on businesses that hire illegal immigrants.
ICE officials have said they do plenty of employer investigations, but they acknowledge that since the 2001 terror attacks, their top work-site enforcement priority has been workplaces with implications for national security — nuclear plants, military bases, airports and chemical plants. Next, they'll focus on flagrant violators in hopes the example will deter others.
Last week, operators of three restaurants in Baltimore pleaded guilty to similar immigration charges, while nine people affiliated with two temporary-employment agencies that do business in New Jersey, Ohio and Pennsylvania were charged in a $5.3 million scheme involving the employment and harboring of illegal entrants.
Several immigration proposals pending in Congress would stiffen penalties against employers who hire illegal immigrants.
German-based IFCO Systems describes itself as the leading pallet-services company in the United States, focusing on recycling millions of the wooden platforms used to stack and move all manner of goods. It operates about five dozen facilities nationwide and has been expanding steadily, according to the company's Web site.
IFCO Systems acknowledged that a number of employees were detained Wednesday and pledged to cooperate with the investigation.
"It is our policy to comply with all federal and state employment requirements," the company said in a statement.
The current and former IFCO Systems managers arrested were identified by Suddaby as: Michael Ames, 44, Shrewsbury, Mass.; Robert Belvin, 43, Clifton Park, N.Y.; Abelino Chicas, 40, Houston; Scott Dodge, 43, Albany; William Hoskins, 29, Cincinnati; James Rice, 36, Houston; and Dario Salzano, 36, Amsterdam, N.Y.
Last year, Wal-Mart stores agreed to pay $11 million to settle allegations concerning the employment and mistreatment of illegal immigrants.
Wal-Mart has maintained that top executives did not know that cleaning contractors were hiring illegal immigrants, who sometimes slept in the backs of stores. An ICE affidavit unsealed as part of that case, however, asserted that two executives were aware of the practice.
