November 7, 2007

ICE investigation leads to the arrest of 23 workers with unauthorized access at O'Hare Airport
Two others face federal charges as the result of multi-agency partnership

CHICAGO - A corporate officer and an office manager of a Bensenville temporary employment agency were arrested today on federal charges alleging they harbored illegal aliens, and more than 20 workers for the agency were arrested on state charges for allegedly using fraudulent airport security badges, state and federal officials announced. The federal charges allege, in effect, that the company managers assisted their workers in obtaining unauthorized access to secure areas at O'Hare International Airport, including the tarmac. The arrests followed an eight-month multi-agency federal investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Simultaneous to the arrests, which began early this morning and continued throughout the day, ICE agents executed a federal search warrant at the offices of the employment agency, Ideal Staffing Solutions, Inc., located at 170 N. Pine Lane, Bensenville, as part of an ongoing criminal investigation.

According to separate criminal complaints unsealed today in U.S. District Court against the two Ideal Staffing managers, more than 100 temporary workers employed by the agency were in possession of fraudulently obtained airport security badges, issued by the Chicago Department of Aviation. These green color-coded badges allowed the workers to enter secure areas while loading pallets, freight and meals for companies doing business at O'Hare, including some commercial airlines.

The complaint affidavits allege that Ideal Staffing managers told workers they needed to have identification, but that the documents need not be legitimate. At times, Ideal Staffing managers allegedly provided some workers with deactivated airport security badges issued in other names, allowing them to bypass the appropriate security screening.

"This case illustrates ICE's resolve to ensuring unauthorized workers are not employed at our nation's critical infrastructure facilities. The investigation identifies a vulnerability that could compromise national security while bringing criminal charges against individuals who built an illegal workforce into their business practices," said Elissa A. Brown, special agent-in-charge for the ICE Office of Investigations in Chicago.

The federal defendants, Mary Gurin, 36, of Carpentersville, Ideal Staffing's corporate secretary, and Norinye Benitez, 24, of Franklin Park, an office manager, were each charged with one count of harboring illegal aliens for financial gain and one count of misuse of social security numbers. Benitez, herself, is allegedly an illegal alien from Mexico, and Gurin employed Benitez and signed her airport badge application while knowing Benitez's illegal immigration status, the federal charges allege.

"If we are to ensure public safety, we must know who has access to the secure areas of  airports. A fundamental component of airport safety is preventing the use of false identification badges, and punishing those who commit or enable such violations," said Patrick J. Fitzgerald, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.

According to the affidavits, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspector discovered in March that a majority of the social security numbers associated with Ideal Staffing employees were either numbers that did not exist or were numbers that belonged to other persons. Early last month, ICE agents reviewed more than 150 airport security badge applications submitted to the Aviation Department for 120 employees of Ideal Staffing and learned that 110 of the applications listed social security numbers that either do not exist or belong to other persons, some of whom were deceased.

In one instance described in the complaints, Benitez allegedly told a temporary worker who was cooperating in the investigation to look through a box containing approximately 20 airport security badges and pick one with a picture that most closely resembled his own likeness. This individual later used one of those badges to gain access to work at an airline cargo facility and was never fingerprinted, as required by the Aviation Department, before being hired by Ideal Staffing and sent to work within a secure area of the airport.

The Cook County Sheriff's Police Department, assisted by ICE, coordinated today's arrests of Ideal Staffing workers at various warehouses located on airport grounds and targeted residences. Those in the custody of the Cook County Sheriff's Police Department are facing state felony charges for possession of fraudulent identification in the form of an airport security badge.

ICE agents also interviewed the arrestees; those found to be in the country illegally will face deportation after their state cases are adjudicated. Of the 23 men arrested on state charges, all are illegal aliens from Mexico.

"This identity fraud case is an excellent example of law enforcement agencies on all levels working together to disrupt criminal activity that affects our community," Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart said.

ICE was assisted in this investigation by the following agencies: Social Security Administration-Office of the Inspector General; Department of Labor-Office of the Inspector General; United States Attorneys' Office; Cook County State's Attorney's Office; Cook County Sheriff's Police Department; City of Chicago-Office of the Inspector General; U.S Customs and Border Protection; and the Transportation Security Administration.

If convicted, Gurin and Benitez each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for harboring illegal aliens and five years in prison for misuse of a social security number. The state felony charges against the 23 others carry a maximum penalty of three years incarceration.

The public is reminded that the charges contain only allegations and are not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

In accordance with ICE's homeland security mission, ICE agents prioritize worksite enforcement efforts by focusing on the sites related to critical infrastructure and national security. Unauthorized workers employed at sensitive facilities such as airports, nuclear power plants, chemical plants, military bases, defense facilities and seaports, pose a vulnerability which compromises the integrity of these key assets.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

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