Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
4 Poultry Plant Execs Indicted After 2019 Immigration Raid
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
August 10, 2020

Share

JACKSON, Miss. — Four executives from two Mississippi poultry processing plants have been indicted on federal charges tied to one of the largest workplace immigration raids in the U.S. in the past decade.

U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Matt Albence, announced the indictments as the documents were unsealed Thursday.

Their announcement happened a day before the one-year anniversary of the raids in which 680 people were arrested at seven poultry plants in central Mississippi.

Their announcement happened a day before the one-year anniversary of the raids in which 680 people were arrested at seven poultry plants in central Mississippi.

Hurst and Albence also scolded journalists for reports that focused on the arrests separating children from immigrant parents who were sent to detention centers.

“If a parent puts their child in that position where they commit a criminal act that subjects them to being arrested and detained … that responsibility falls on them,” Albence said.

None of the four people from the newly unsealed indictments were arrested on the day of the raids, said Hurst, who is the U.S. attorney for south Mississippi. He said they worked as managers, supervisors or human resources employees.

Hurst said journalists have failed to focus on the American victims of identity theft — people whose Social Security numbers have been falsely used by immigrants working in the U.S. without proper documentation.

“The simple fact of the matter is, illegal aliens steal jobs of American citizens,” Hurst said. “And illegal aliens depress the wages of American citizens.”

Last Year’s Raids in Mississippi Have Brought 126 Indictments, 117 Criminal Arrests and 73 Convictions

Amelia S. McGowan, an attorney who works on behalf of immigrants for the Mississippi Center for Justice, responded later: “Trotting out anti-immigrant accusations won’t hide that the only theft here is the executives’ profiteering off vulnerable workers in unsafe conditions and at inadequate wages.”

Albence said last year’s raids in Mississippi have brought 126 indictments, 117 criminal arrests and 73 convictions. Hurst said the investigation continues.

The chairman of the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee, Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, said in a statement Thursday that he’s glad the Trump administration, a year later, is bringing criminal charges against employers and plant managers.

“However, the Administration still has not answered for the cruel and unnecessary family separation inflicted on hundreds of Mississippi families and how it continues to poorly treat immigrants,” Thompson said. “With hundreds left behind, it’s clear that working families, rather than the employers taking advantage of these families, are the ones that continue to suffer from the effects of this raid.”

Two people from the indictments unsealed Thursday — Salvador Delgado-Nieves and Iris Villalon — worked at A&B Inc., a plant in Pelahatchie.

Delgado-Nieves, 57, of Pelahatchie, was charged with harboring people who were in the U.S. illegally and assisting them with falsely presenting themselves as U.S. citizens. He was also charged with helping immigrants obtain false Social Security cards and of making false statements to law enforcement. Conviction would carry up to 74 years in prison and $2.5 million in fines, Hurst said.

Villalon, 44, of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, was charged with harboring a person who was in the U.S. illegally and one count of making false statements about hiring immigrants without proper documentation. Conviction would carry up to 20 years in prison and $750,000 in fines, Hurst said.

Johnson Was Charged With Harboring People Who Were in the U.S. Illegally

The two others indicted — Carolyn Johnson and Aubrey “Bart” Willis — worked for Pearl River Foods LLC in Carthage.

Johnson was charged with harboring people who were in the U.S. illegally, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Conviction on all charges would carry up to 84 years in prison and $2.25 million in fines, Hurst said.

A indictment says Johnson, 50, of Kosciusko, Mississippi, was a human resources manager, and Willis, 39, of Flowery Branch, Georgia, was manager of the plant.

Johnson was charged with harboring people who were in the U.S. illegally, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Conviction on all charges would carry up to 84 years in prison and $2.25 million in fines, Hurst said.

Willis was charged with harboring people in the U.S. illegally. Conviction on all charges would carry a maximum of 50 years in prison and $1.25 million in fines, Hurst said.

An indictment says both Willis and Johnson harbored immigrants after the plant was raided.

Villalon, Johnson and Willis appeared before a magistrate Thursday. Each pleaded not guilty, and each was released. Each declined to comment outside the courtroom.

A hearing for Delgado-Nieves was also scheduled for Thursday but was delayed by more than an hour.

____

This story was first published on Aug. 6, 2020. It was updated on Aug. 7, 2020, to correct the number of people who have been convicted after immigration raids at seven poultry plants in Mississippi last year. Seventy-three people have been convicted, not 17.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Musk PAC Tells Philadelphia Judge the $1 Million Sweepstakes Winners Are Not Chosen by Chance

DON'T MISS

Bass’ Record 61-Yard Field Goal Lifts Bills Over Dolphins in Thriller

DON'T MISS

Big Spenders: These Companies Are Giving the Most to California Legislative Candidates

DON'T MISS

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Drifts Ahead of Election Day, While Oil Rises and Yields Sink

DON'T MISS

Saints Fire Head Coach Dennis Allen After Seven-Game Losing Streak

DON'T MISS

Raiders Fire Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy and 2 Other Offensive Coaches

DON'T MISS

Storm in the Caribbean Is on a Track to Likely Hit Cuba as a Hurricane

DON'T MISS

Israel Ends Agreement With UN Agency Providing Aid in Gaza

DON'T MISS

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

DON'T MISS

Trump, Musk and an American Masculinity Crisis

UP NEXT

Visalia Rollerblader Suffered Major Injuries After Being Struck by Vehicle

UP NEXT

Fresno County Man Indicted for Possessing Stolen Guns

UP NEXT

On Elon Musk’s X, Dems Are an Endangered Species While GOP Goes Viral

UP NEXT

New Vehicles, Face Paint and a 1,200-Foot Fall: The US Army Prepares for War With China

UP NEXT

CNN Bars Pro-Trump Guest After His ‘Beeper’ Remark to Mehdi Hasan

UP NEXT

LGBTQ Supporters Drown Out Westboro Baptists’ Anti-Gay Message in Fresno

UP NEXT

The ‘Black Insurrectionist’ Was Actually White. The Deception Did Not Stop There

UP NEXT

Washington Post Says It Will Stop Endorsing Presidential Candidates

UP NEXT

What Happened When a Barber Told Trump About His $15,000 Electric Bill

UP NEXT

Los Angeles Times Editorials Editor Resigns After Newspaper Withholds Presidential Endorsement

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Drifts Ahead of Election Day, While Oil Rises and Yields Sink

21 mins ago

Saints Fire Head Coach Dennis Allen After Seven-Game Losing Streak

25 mins ago

Raiders Fire Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy and 2 Other Offensive Coaches

29 mins ago

Storm in the Caribbean Is on a Track to Likely Hit Cuba as a Hurricane

32 mins ago

Israel Ends Agreement With UN Agency Providing Aid in Gaza

37 mins ago

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

1 hour ago

Trump, Musk and an American Masculinity Crisis

1 hour ago

What One Tossup District Says About the Trump-Harris Battle for the Suburbs

1 hour ago

Herbert Shines, Chargers Defense Dominates in Win Over Browns

1 hour ago

US Confirms Reports That Iran Arrested an Iranian-American Citizen

1 hour ago

Musk PAC Tells Philadelphia Judge the $1 Million Sweepstakes Winners Are Not Chosen by Chance

PHILADELPHIA — A lawyer for Elon Musk’s political action committee told a judge in Philadelphia on Monday that so-called “winner...

1 min ago

1 min ago

Musk PAC Tells Philadelphia Judge the $1 Million Sweepstakes Winners Are Not Chosen by Chance

7 mins ago

Bass’ Record 61-Yard Field Goal Lifts Bills Over Dolphins in Thriller

21 mins ago

Big Spenders: These Companies Are Giving the Most to California Legislative Candidates

21 mins ago

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Drifts Ahead of Election Day, While Oil Rises and Yields Sink

25 mins ago

Saints Fire Head Coach Dennis Allen After Seven-Game Losing Streak

Raiders
29 mins ago

Raiders Fire Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy and 2 Other Offensive Coaches

32 mins ago

Storm in the Caribbean Is on a Track to Likely Hit Cuba as a Hurricane

37 mins ago

Israel Ends Agreement With UN Agency Providing Aid in Gaza

Search

Send this to a friend