Feds: Kansas Hotel Owners Hired Undocumented Workers

"The owners of an Overland Park, Kan., hotel have been indicted on charges of knowingly hiring undocumented aliens who were paid less than other employees, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.  Munir Ahmad Chaudary, 51, and his wife, Rhonda R. Bridge, 40, both of Overland Park, are charged with the following crimes:

– One count of conspiracy to harbor undocumented aliens for personal gain.

– Five counts of harboring undocumented aliens for personal gain.

– Four counts of wire fraud.

The government is seeking to forfeit the proceeds of the crimes including two hotels the couple owns: The Clarion Hotel at 7000 W. 108th St. in Overland Park, and the Clarion Hotel at 11828 NW Plaza Circle in Kansas City, Mo." - DOJ, Sept. 11, 2012.

"We want to send a very clear message. ... We are going to enforce immigration laws, and we are going to enforce them equally," Grissom said in a news conference in Kansas City, Kan.  "We're not going to enforce them merely on the backs of (undocumented workers). We are going to go after the people hiring them."  That symbolizes a switch from years past when employees often were the target. In many cases, authorities would pull up to a worksite, Grissom said, round up dozens of employees and load them on a bus. The next day, though, "they would be replaced by other folks," he said.  The indictment marks the government's first attempt to seize a hotel in Kansas in a case involving undocumented workers." - Kansas City Star, Sept. 12, 2012.