Articles Posted in ICE

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After an investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) Ibraheem Adeneye, a Nigerian native, was stripped of his US citizenship on December 6. His citizenship was revoked after being convicted of marriage fraud, naturalization fraud, and giving false statements to a federal agent.

Since it is no longer legal for him to reside in the United States because of his stripped citizenship, Adeneye is now facing deportation. The investigation by ICE HSI uncovered that Adeneye was setting up sham marriages between US citizens and Nigerians so that they could obtain immigration benefits like citizenship. The US citizens involved in the sham marriages received monetary payment to help the Nigerians. Adeneye was caught by authorities after a previous wife of his became a confidential informant (CI). Specifically, he was caught when he came into contact with an undercover agent (UCA). The UCA posed a US citizen willing to enter into a sham marriage with a Nigerian, which Adeneye arranged and brokered. Local officials were aware of the ongoing operation.

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Following an investigation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Florida resident, Eduardo Dozzi Barbugli, was convicted of visa fraud, alien smuggling, and conspiracy. ICE HSI sentenced Barbugli to 20 months in federal prison on December 1 and he was also ordered to pay a fine of $55 million dollars, representing the amount he had gained illegally through his conspiracy.

In addition, Eduardo’s parents were also convicted for their part in the conspiracy and sentenced on October 14. Through the visa fraud, the Barbugli’s supplied illegal workers to more than 160 hotels. The Barbugli’s helped more than 1,000 illegal aliens enter the U.S. on fraudulent H-2B visas. To show that the companies they where supplying the workers to had a legitimate need, the Barbugli’s created shell companies and hid the fact the all workers in fact were employed by the same company, VR Services. Since Barbugli is an illegal immigrant working in the U.S. from Brazil, he will be deported after serving out his sentence.

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On November 23, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HIS) sentenced Bao Ping Wang and Trang Lu to 18 months in prison with two months probation for hiring and harboring illegal aliens. Along with their sentencing, the two defendants were required to pay $1.2 million, a combination of fines and payback of illegal proceeds gained. In addition, Wang agreed to deport from the US after serving out his sentence.

Wang and Lu managed companies called Hi-Tech Trucking, Inc. and SeaLands Food where they employed both legal and illegal workers. Wang and Lu knowingly hired the illegal workers, as they did not have proper documentation and credentials. The two also provided residence and food for their illegal employees. Their bank records showed that they made payments for the properties the illegal employees were staying at.

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US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) charged Genova Navarro and Dianne Racity on November 17 for impersonating federal officers, aiding and abetting as well as harboring illegal immigrants. In addition to Navarro and Racity, Alicia Domench- Van Rhyn was charged with conspiracy charges.

The three women posed as federal immigration officers and employees offering special immigration benefits and faster application processing in return for substantial fees that their clients paid ranging from $5,000 to $18,000. The women fully knew while taking their clients money that they did not have the authority to carry out any of the promises they had made. If found guilty, the defendants could face up to 20 years in prison.

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MVP “Q & A Forum” – This Friday, December 17th, 2010

We wanted to find a new way to engage our reader base. Every other Friday, we will post the ten (10) best/most frequently asked questions received during the week from our h1bvisalawyerblog, Facebook, and Twitter readers. We will answer those questions and provide the Q&A on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

If you have a burning question, are seeking assistance with a difficult immigration related case, wish to discuss your views on Comprehensive Immigration Reform, AZ SB1070, priority dates, or the debate focused on Ending Birthright Citizenship, please contact us by submitting your question/comment/viewpoint in our comment box provided on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

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Long’s Human Resource Service signed an agreement on November 10, becoming the first Alabama business to be an IMAGE partner with the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The IMAGE program, also known as the ICE Mutual agreement between Government and Employers, was launched in 2007 to helps employer’s better follow the language and regulations of the law by providing them with the necessary information and tools.

To become an IMAGE partner, a company must undergo a rigorous process that includes in-depth training and investigation into its hiring practices. Employers are provided with the screening tools necessary to prevent illegal workers from being hired. The IMAGE program works to combat that weakness that illegal workers create both within the company and the government by using fraudulent documents to gain employment and commit identity theft against US workers. Companies who sign the IMAGE partnership are agreeing to use the best hiring methods, train and hold their staff to the highest standards, and use the screening tools for all employee applicants offered by the federal government. IMAGE partner companies also process I-9 forms, use the E-Verify system, maintain employee records and comply with all employment laws in order to improve their business as well as meet the standards of the program.

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MVP “Q & A Forum” – This Friday, December 3rd, 2010

We wanted to find a new way to engage our reader base. Every other Friday, we will post the ten (10) best/most frequently asked questions received during the week from our h1bvisalawyerblog, Facebook, and Twitter readers. We will answer those questions and provide the Q&A on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

If you have a burning question, are seeking assistance with a difficult immigration related case, wish to discuss your views on Comprehensive Immigration Reform, AZ SB1070, priority dates, or the debate focused on Ending Birthright Citizenship, please contact us by submitting your question/comment/viewpoint in our comment box provided on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

Continue reading

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The announcement on November 10 of E-Verify’s systems expansion was made by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas.

New capabilities of the system include US passport photo matching as well as automatic checks of US passports for authenticity when presented for employment verification checks to help increase the reliability of the program. Napolitano is confident that the improved E-Verify system will, “enhance our ability to detect counterfeit documents and combat fraud.” The E-Verify system now allows employers to verify the identity of any new employee by comparing their passport or passport card to the State Department records on file.

The E-Verify system is run by DHS in connection with the Social Security Administration and is free to use for all participating employers. Currently, the system is being used by more than 230,000 employers.

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Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced the launch of its newly designed website, ICE.gov, on October 26. Features of the new website include up to date news from ICE as well as an improved image gallery. Information about ICE Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HIS) and ICE Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) are also accessible on the new website.

A new function allows users to bookmark articles, receive email alerts on a range of topics, follow ICE on twitter and watch ICE YouTube videos. In addition, the Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS) launched on July 23 allows the sites users to search for detained aliens in ICE custody. Already, ICE has over 12,500 subscribers.

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After an investigation lead by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HIS), George Anagnostou of Maryland, was sentenced on October 28 to four months in prison and another four months on house arrest with electronic monitoring. Anagnostou also faces two years of supervised release after serving his sentence. His charges consisted of harboring at least 24 illegal workers of the Timbuktu and By the Docks restaurants. As a part of his sentencing, Anagnostou was forced to give up his motorcycle, pay a sum of $378,386.21 from five different bank accounts, give up $99,890 from the restaurant and his house, as well as an additional pay $256,696.67 at his court hearing.

From 2000 to 2005, Anagnostou was in charge of hiring employees for both Timbuktu and By the Docks restaurants. Other than collecting two documents, Anagnostou never made any other efforts to verify the authority of an individual to work in the United States, like using the required Employment Eligibility Verification forms (I-9s). Even when informed that many of his applicants had presented him with falsified forms, he insisted that his employees stop asking questions and accept the documents. In addition, the Social Security Administration began notifying Anagnostou that the Social Security numbers he was supplying for his employees did not match up in the database but he still did nothing to validate the legitimacy of his workers.

Anagnostou benefited financially from the illegal workers employment at the restaurants because he deducted their rental payments from their overtime wages due, paid them in cash preventing him from being subject to tax liability and he didn’t claim the rental property on his income taxes.

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